05 Nov Have You Seen the Whole Statute?
Many laws are enacted as a coherent whole and then divided and separated when they are codified. Part of the statute may be sprinkled into the jurisdiction and procedure code, part into one substantive code and the rest into another. Additionally, within one code, sections of a single statute may appear widely separated. Two federal examples:
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The Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990 appears in the following United States Code titles: 5, 31, 38 and 42.
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The Child Abuse, Domestic Violence, Adoption and Family Services Act of 1992 appears in United States Code title 42, but part is codified between 5101 to 5118e and the rest between 10401 to 10415.
Reviewing the entire statute may reveal arguments that are not apparent when only a segment is examined. The entire statute may reflect a statutory intent that is not immediately apparent from isolated sections. Definitions may be codified in one section that illuminate the meaning of other, distant sections.
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Bennett v. Spear, 520 U.S. 154, 174 (1997) (“Viewed in the context of the entire statute, § 1540(g) (1)(A)’s reference to any ‘violation’ of the ESA cannot be interpreted to include the Secretary’s maladministration of the ESA.”)
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Gray v. Administrative Director of Court, 84 Haw. 138, 148, 931 P.2d 580, 590 (1997) (citations omitted) (“we must read statutory language in the context of the entire statute and construe it in a manner consistent with its purpose”)
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State v. Terrell, 588 S.W.2d 784, 786 (Tex. 1979) (“In ascertaining this intent, courts must examine the entire statute or act and not merely an isolated portion thereof.”)
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Shotz v. City of Plantation, 344 F.3d 1161 (11th Cir. 2003) (“While that definition expressly applies to Subchapter I of the ADA, we ‘may consider Congress’s use of a particular term elsewhere in the statute to determine its proper meaning within the context of the statutory scheme.’
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Goodlin v. Medtronic, Inc., 167 F.3d 1367, 1374 (11th Cir. 1999); see also Doctor’s Hosp., Inc. v. Bowen, 811 F.2d 1448, 1452 (11th Cir. 1987) (‘A presumption is made that the same words used in different parts of an act have the same meaning.’).”)
To locate the whole statute, use the historical references to trace back to the original statute as enacted. Different states offer different tools for locating session laws, enrolled bills and other acts of the legislature. Among other sources, see http://www.lawsource.com/also/.