Constitution Act - Law Dictionary Search Results
Home Dictionary Name: constitution actconstitution
constitution [Latin constitutio system, fundamental principles (of an institution), from constituere to set up, establish] 1 : the basic principles and laws of a nation, state, or social group that determine the powers and duties of the government and guarantee certain rights to the people in it 2 : a written instrument containing the fundamental rules of a political or social organization ;esp cap : the U.S. Constitution see also the Judicial System and the Constitution in the back matter compare charter, declaration NOTE: A constitution was originally simply a law, ordinance, or decree usually made by a king, emperor, or other superior authority. A constitution now usually contains the fundamental law and principles with which all other laws must conform. Unlike the U.S. Constitution, the British Constitution is not set down in a comprehensive document, but is found in a variety of statutes (as the Magna Carta) and in common law. Canada inherited many of the rules and practices...
Act of God
Act of God, a direct, violent, sudden, and irresistible act of nature, which could not, by any reasonable care, have been foreseen or resisted, see Nugent v. Smith, (1876) 1 CPD 423. The general rule is that where the law creates a duty and the party is disabled from performing it, without any default of his own, by the act of God or the King's enemies, the law will excuse him; but when a party by his own contract creates a duty he is bound to make it good, notwithstanding any accident by inevitable necessity, Nichols v. Marsland, (1876) 2 Ex D 4. See also Common Carrier, tit. CARRIER.Accidental fire is not an act of God which can be traced to natural causes, Patel Roadways Ltd. v. Birla Yamaha Ltd., (2000) 4 SCC 91.Means an overwhelming, unpreventable event caused exclusively by forces of nature, such as an earthquake, flood, or tornado. The definition has been statutorily broadened to include all natural phenomena that are exceptional, inevitable, and irresistible, the effects of whi...
Public Order Act, 1936
Public Order Act, 1936 (English) (1 Edw. 8 & 1 Geo. 6, c. 6). An Act to prohibit the wearing of uniforms in connection with political objects and the maintenance by private persons of associations of limitary or similar character, and to make further provision for the preservation of public order on the occasion of public processions and meetings and in public places.S. 1.-Prohibition of uniform in connection with political objects.S. 2.-Prohibition of quasi-military organizations.S. 3.-Confers powers for the preservation of public order on the occasion of processions.S. 4.-Prohibition of offensive weapons at public meetings and processions.S. 5.-Prohibition of offensive conduct conducive to breaches of the peace.S. 6.-Amendment of Public Meeting Act, 1908; see PUBLIC MEETING.S. 7.-Enforcement.S. 8.-Application to Scotland.S. 9.-Interpretation.S. 10.-Short title and extent.A person who commits an offence under s. 2 is liable on summary conviction to a maximum of 6 months' imprisonment ...
Any act or omission which constitutes any offence under this Act
Any act or omission which constitutes any offence under this Act, the expression 'Any act or omission which constitutes any offence under this Act' in s. 56 of the Act, merely imports the idea that the same act or omission might constitute an offence under another law and could be tried under such other law or laws also, State of Bihar v. Murad Ali Khan, (1988) 4 SCC 655 (665): AIR 1989 SC 1. [Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, s. 56]...
Duly constituted according to law
Duly constituted according to law, means a com-pany duly constituted according to law is one which is constituted by registration under some Act of Parliament or in pursuance of an Act of Parliament of under letter patent or under some constitution ejusdem generis. It is doubtful whether a partnership of less than 20 persons constituted merely by the consensual agreement of the partners can be regarded as a company duly constituted according to law; if such a partnership is formed not for the purpose of carrying on a business but simply for the purpose of being registered with a view to winding up. It is not a company entitled to be registered under Part XXII, Chpater II of the Companies Act, 1965, R. v. Registrar of Joint Stock Companies, Ex parte Johnston, (1891) 2 QB 598 (CA)...
Criminal Appeal Act, 1907 (English)
Criminal Appeal Act, 1907 (English) (7 Edw. 7, c. 23), came into force on the 19th April, 1908. For a great number of years the merits and demerits of criminal appeal have been discussed in this country.In 1844 Sir Fitzroy Kelly, in a remarkable speech in the House of Commons, advocated criminal appeal, the claim to which has also been recognized by Starkie, Sir John Holker, and Chief Baron Pollock; and even Blackstone,with whom, as Mr. Lecky has observed, admiration of our national jurisprudence was almost a foible, passed some severe criticisms on the stateof the criminal law of his day. In more recent times Lord James of Hereford (then Sir Henry James) introduced a criminal appeal bill into the House of Commons,which was supported by Lord Russell of Killowen (then Sir Charles Russell). And in 1889 Lord Fitzgerald, when introducing a measure into the House of Lords, said that the absene of any provision for rectifying errors andmistakes in criminal cases constituted a blot upon the c...
Constitution
Constitution, any regular form or system of government. Also a particular law, ordinance, or regulation made by the authority of any superior; as the Novel Constitutions of Justinian and his successors; the Constitutions of Clarendon; the Ecclesiastical Constitutions, etc.Constitution and 'Organisation' as against jurisdiction and powers', words do not include words 'jurisdiction' and powers' within their scope and power of 'Constitution' and 'organisation' of the Supreme Court and High Court nests with Parliament alone, Jamshed N. Guzdar v. State of Maharashtra, (2005) 2 SCC 59.Constitution is the mechanism under which the laws are to be made and not merely an Act which declares what the law is to be. A Constitution must not be construed in any narrow or pedantic sense, and that construction most beneficial to the widest possible amplitude of its power, must be adopted, India Cement Ltd. v. State of T.N., (1990) 1 SCC 12: AIR 1990 SC 85.Means the Constitution of India. [Supreme Court ...
Ireland
Ireland was a distinct kingdom until 1801, when the Union with Ireland Act, 1800 (39 & 40 Geo. 3, c. 67) (see Chitty's Statutes, tit. 'Union Acts'), formed the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.' This Act confirmed the eight Articles of Union, and provided for Irish representation in both Houses of Parliament at Westminster. Redistribution of the Irish seats in the House of Commons was carried out in 1832, 1867, and 1885. The constant demand for a separate Parliament for Ireland led to the introduction of various Bills, but it was not until 1914 that the Government of Ireland Act of that year was placed on the Statute Book. The operation of this Act was suspended for the duration of the war. The demand of the Irish Republicans of the South for a complete severance led to the Govern-ment of Ireland Act, 1920, which superseded the Act of 1914. It provided for separate Governments in Northern and Southern Ireland, each with an Executive and Legislature of two chambers, and a Co...
Australia, Commonwealth of.
Australia, Commonwealth of. The association of the people of New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland, Tasmania, and Western Australia in a federal Commonwealth comprising also Papua, the Northern Territory, and Norfolk, Ashmore and Cantier Island in the Pacific (and see MANDATED TERRITORIES), with a Constitution enabling its Parliament, consisting of the Sovereign of the British Empire, a Senate, and a House of Representatives, to legislate for the whole of Australia. The legislative powers of the Parliament, which may be found under 39 heads in the 51st paragraph of the Constitution, extend to trade, taxation, defence, coinage, bankruptcy, copyright, marriage, 'the people of any race other than certain aborigines,' immigrants and emigration, 'external affairs,' railway construction, and other matters too numerous to particularize; see Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act, 1900 (Imperial, 63 & 64 Vict. c. 12); A.-G. for Commonwealth of Australia v. Colonial Sugar R...
Australia
Australia, an island in the British Dominions, consisting before the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act of 1900 (63 & 64 Vict. c. 12), of the separately governed (see, e.g., the New South Wales Constitution Act, 1855 (18 & 19 Vict. c. 54), and the Victoria Constitution Act, 1855 (18 & 19 Vict. c. 55) colonies of New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, and South Australia. See next title....
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