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Finding Acts
 Definitions
Structure of an Act
Finding
Acts Online…
Or in the Law Library
Definitions
An Understanding of the following
terms is useful
- Legislation:
The written law of a country, found in English law
as Acts or Statutory Instruments.
-
An Act
of Parliament (also known as a statute)
can be defined as "A document
that sets out legal rules and
has (normally) been passed
by both Houses of Parliament
in the form of a Bill and agreed
to by the Crown (see royal assent).”1
- Statutory Instrument: A form
of delegated legislation, often
seen as "Rules", "Orders" or "Regulations".
Primarily it specifies the detailed
rules needed for an Act to function.
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The
structure of an Act
Understanding
the structure of an Act can be of great
help to you when searching for, and reading,
Acts. The example featured below shows
you the key parts of an Act.
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1. Short Title: Access to Medical Reports Act 1988 (c. 28)
2. Chapter no:1988 Chapter c. 28
Each Act has a chapter number (abbreviated to ‘c.’, ‘ch.’ or ‘cap’).
Acts are given chapter numbers in sequence throughout the calendar year as
they receive Royal Assent i.e. move from being a Bill to an Act.
3. Long Title: An Act to establish a right of access by individuals to reports
relating to themselves provided by medical practitioners for employment or
insurance purposes and to make provision for related matters
4. Date of royal Assent: [29th July 1988]
The date that the Bill became an act. See also commencement.
5. Enacting formula: Be it
enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and
consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and
Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the
same, as follows:—
6. Parts, sections and sub-sections: the body of the Act.
7. Interpretation: definitions of terms used in the Act.
(usually found near the end of an Act)
8. Commencement and geographic extent: commencement is the date at which the
Act becomes law, and can differ from date of royal assent. Indeed, parts of
the same Act can commence on different dates.
[….]
(2) This Act shall come into force on 1st January 1989.
(3) Nothing in this Act applies to a medical report prepared before the coming
into force of this Act.
(4) This Act does not extend to Northern Ireland
-------------------------------------------
Access to Medical Reports Act 1988 (c. 28) Office of Public Sector Information. © Queen's
Printer of Acts of Parliament.
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| Additional
Help Guides |
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Individual
database help guides are available
from the database pages
or Library
guides page.
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Finding Acts Online…
Digital Library
You can search for Acts from the SubjectSearch page
for legislation. The
following sources are worth noting:
Library Catalogue
There are often books in the Library stock that deal with key legislation. These
can be found using the catalogue– enter the title of the act or the subject
matter.
e.g. title: Police and Criminal Evidence Act
or
e.g. subject: criminal law
LexisLibrary and Westlaw both
provide up-to-date databases of acts and statutory instruments. Westlaw
provides access to an easy to use ‘analysis’ which
prove further information and relevant
cases – very
useful!
The Office of Public Sector Information provides
access to the full text of Acts
of the UK parliament since 1988. They appear
in orignal form (they are not updated). The site is useful because the acts
are published on the Net simultaneously or within 24 hours of publication
in
print
form.
The Explanatory
Notes is useful for public acts published since 1999. These are
useful because they are designed to aid understanding and place the effect
of an Act in context.
Or In the Law Library…
To find
a particular
act in
the University
Library
you must
check the indexes
of the
series
listed
below.
Individual
Acts are
not listed on the
Library
catalogue
(OPAC).
All of these series are in the Law Collection on the First Floor of the Chelmsford
Campus Library, arranged alphabetically by title. Those marked * are also available
at the Cambridge Campus Library.
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*Current Law Statutes
Annual volumes of this series are held from 1949 onwards. Each volume contains
the acts of the year arranged by chapter number. There is an index by short
title and a chronological table in the front of each volume.
Acts for the current year are contained within the looseleaf Service Files.
Blue paper means no notes yet!
Why is it useful?
Each act is accompanied by notes that explain and comment upon it. These notes
appear in the text in smaller print. Not only do the notes help in understanding
the act but they also provide information on parliamentary debates and reports
that led to its implementation.
*Halsbury’s Statutes
This series contains the amended text all Public General Acts in force, plus
commentary and notes. Volumes are updated when there is a major change in
an area of law. Check the date of a volume to evaluate how current the information
is.
Why is it useful?
It is the main source for finding acts on a particular subject and for up-to-date
versions of acts.
Law Report Statutes
These are the texts of the acts as they were when first published, with no
updating. Arranged in annual volumes 1866 – 1935.
Public and General Acts
Annual volumes published by the Council of Law Reporting 1937 - 1973.
Statutes at Large
Contains older acts dating from 1225.
*Looseleaf Encyclopaedias
Look in the book stock for Looseleaf Encyclopaedias on your subject. These
pull together acts, statutory instruments, guidance notes, treaties etc.
on a particular subject.
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Further Help
1 "Act of Parliament" A Dictionary
of Law. Ed. Elizabeth A. Martin. Oxford
University Press, 2002. Oxford Reference
Online. Oxford University Press. Anglia Ruskin University. 1 June 2005
http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t49.e55
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