Word Meaning and Legal Interpretation

This book introduces ideas about word meaning in the context of law. It analyzes cases from common law jurisdictions that concern the meaning, definition and legal status of individual words, labels and categories. The focus is on the question of how law assigns authority over word meaning in different circumstances and in different domains of law. This textbook offers a concise introduction to key concepts in the study of meaning and interpretation taken from linguistics, philosophy and the law. A range of actual cases that involve ordinary words, commonsense categories and problems of classification are explored and clearly explained for readers who want to learn more but lack the legal background. Word Meaning and Legal Interpretation: • provides a strong sense of the texture of legal problems • includes detailed summaries and analyses of cases from common law jurisdictions • equips the reader for more advanced studies in language and the law, legal theory and legal interpretation This is an ideal primer for language and law, forensic linguistics and applied linguistics students who wish to explore this fascinating field. This book introduces ideas about word meaning in the context of law. It analyzes cases from common law jurisdictions that concern the meaning, definition and legal status of individual words, labels and categories. The focus is on the question of how law assigns authority over word meaning in different circumstances and in different domains of law.