The Controversy Between " Strict Construction" And " Loose Construction"

Legal Interpretation is not only an important subject in the field of LegalMethodology, but plays a significant role in the national legal system. StrictConstruction and Loose Construction which may seem contradictory supplement eachother and cannot exist effectively without the other. Choosing one construction doesnot mean to absolutely exclude the other one, since today’s society needs to makea dialectical and comprehensive choice to face many changeable situations during thejudicial process.This paper will focus on the inherent principle of Strict Construction and LooseConstruction through the research on case analysis and the application of LegalInterpretation Methods. Based on the historical evolution and the judicial processof civil law system and common law system, this paper will conclude that the twoconstruction will coexist in the long run and our national judicial process shouldrely mainly on Strict Construction while making Loose Construction subsidiary.In the first part, I will make the case analysis of Atkins v. Virginia as themain line to construe the application of legal interpretation methods. Based on theopinion of Justices Stevens and Scalia, I will try to determine which methods were applied by the justices in this case and how they use the methods to interpret boththe constitution and statutes. Finally, I will compare each method and give my opinionon this research, taking into account, the condition of application of each method,which methods will be better in this case. There are some questions to be answered——How many types of Legal Interpretation Methods and how they reflect in theparticular cases? How the dispute of Strict Construction and Loose Constructionoccurs during the judicial process? How the competition of the two constructionenlighten our country’s current legal system? The series of questions pave the wayfor the following introduction of Legal Interpretation Methods.In the second part, I will mainly construe the historical evolution of LegalInterpretation Methods and organize the typical classification of LegalInterpretation Methods between the civil law system and common law system. Theirsorting is not fixed, which leads to the discussion about the inner connection betweenthe Legal Interpretation Principle and Methods. Legal Interpretation Principle guidethe Legal Interpretation Methods and the Legal Interpretation Methods reflect andconstrain the Legal Interpretation Principle. The same type of Legal InterpretationPrinciples tends to apply some particular methods and the Legal InterpretationMethods guided by different Legal Interpretation Principles will lead to differentjudicial opinions.In the third part, concerning the conception and historical evolution of StrictConstruction and Loose Construction, I will innovative put forward my view that thetwo Legal Interpretation Principles are indispensable without hierarchy in terms ofthe fields of legal theory and legal practice, through the analysis of the disputeof Strict Construction and Loose Construction in “the case of Speluncean Explorers”and typical Testamentary Succession case. Strict Construction and Loose Constructionwhich may seem contradictory supplement each other and cannot exist effectivelywithout the other during the process of social evolution. Then I will explain thecause of the inner principle of Strict Construction and Loose Construction from thedevelopment of legal system, the changes of social condition, formal rationality andessential rationality.The final part will integrate the inner principle of Strict Construction and Loose Construction into Chinese legal practice, in respect to Chinese legal historicalevolution and process. I will take the case of Wuying for instance to discuss thehysteresis nature and defects of our existing economic law and lead to pay attentionto the application of Loose Construction following the rapid development ofeconomical market and legal society. In the end of this section, I draw the conclusionthat our national judicial process should rely mainly on Strict Construction whilemaking Loose Construction subsidiary and cultivate a dialectical and comprehensiveattitude during our judicial process.