Contemporary Construction

they are the interpretation of the law made by the Executive department, when the language of the law
is ambiguous it must be given a literal meaning.
Contemporanea exposition est optima et fortissima in lege--- the contemporary construction is
strongest in law.

Administrative rule and interpretation distinguished.

It is a rule when an administrative agency promulgates rules and regulations in the exercise of its rule-
making power delegated to it by the legislature, it "makes" a new law with the force and effect of a valid
law.
-the promulgated rule is binding within the judicial powers of the courts even if they are not in
agreement with the policy stated therein.
It is an interpretation when it renders an opinion or gives a statement of policy, it merely interprets a
pre-existing law.
-they are merely advisory or opinion of the court to determine the meaning of a law.
-the doubt between a rule and an interpretation is quite common, however, if an administrative agency
promulgates and create a new law then it is considered as a rule on the other hand rendering an opinion
or statement about policies are merely interpretation of pre-existing laws.

Executive construction, generally; kinds of.

-Contemporaneous construction is the construction placed upon the statute by an executive or
administrative officer called upon to execute or administer such statute
-ambiguous provisions of the law are always called for an interpretation.
-Executive and administrative officers are generally the very first officials to interpret the law, prior its
enforcement.
-the interpretations are in the form of rules and regulation, circulars, directives, opinions, and
rulings.

Three types of executive interpretation of the law

1. Construction by an executive or administrative officer called to implement the law
-express or implied
-interpretation embodied in a circular, directive or regulation is an express interpretation.
-not implying the statute for certain situation or implying it in particular manner is an implied
interpretation
2. The construction by the Secretary of Justice in his capacity as the chief legal adviser of the
government.
-an opinion issued upon the request of administrative or executive officials who enforce the law.
-unless reprobated by the President, the opinions of the SOJ are generally controlling among
administrative and executive officials.
-the president or executive secretary by authority of the president may modify, alter, or reverse
the construction of a statute given by a department secretary.
3. Construction is the interpretation handed down in an adversary proceeding in the form of a ruling by
an executive officer exercising quasi-judicial power.
-The court in a case pointed out the distinction between an interpretation by an executive
officer charged with the enforcement of a law and that handed down by an executive or administrative
official in an adversary proceeding: "There is indeed a basis for making such a distinction because the
position of a public officer, charged with the enforcement of a law, is different from the one who must
decide a dispute. If there is a fair doubt, his duty is to present the case for the side which he represents,
upon which lies the responsibility of decision. If he surrenders a plausible construction, it will, at least it
may, be surrendered forever, and yet it may be right. Such rulings need not have the detachment of a
judicial, or semi-judicial decision, and may properly carry bias. It would seem that they should not be
authoritative."

Forms of interpretation
-Rules
The rule of law is a principle of governance in which all persons, institutions, and entities, public
and private, including the State itself, are accountable to laws that are publicly promulgated, equally
enforced, and independently adjudicated, and which are consistent with international human rights
norms and standards.
-Circulars
-Circulars shall refer to issuances prescribing policies, rules and regulations, and procedures
promulgated pursuant to law, applicable to individuals and organizations outside the Government and
designed to supplement provisions of the law or to provide means for carrying them out, including
information relating thereto.
-Opinions
-statement by public officials to uphold a legal claim and provide as a counsel. However, in the
executive branch, the one who gives opinion is the Secretary of Justice. The SOJ serves under thhe
executive dept. particularly DOJ as the prosecution arm and its legal counsel.
-Directives
-are decisions called as executive orders or direct orders by the President.
Publication is not required
-Rules which are merely interpretations of the law or of the regulations issued to implement the law
need not be published to be effective, the said interpretations not being considered as "law".
-internal rules within the administrative agency does not need to be published to be effective.

Weight accorded to contemporaneous construction

-When there is doubt about an interpretation, the construction placed upon it by the executive or
administrative officer charged with its enforcement will be adopted to resolve the doubt.
- “the principle that the contemporaneous construction of a statute by the executive officers of
the government, whose duty it is to execute it, is entitled to great respect, and should ordinarily control
the construction of the statute by the courts, is so firmly embedded in our jurisdiction that no
authorities need be cited to support it.”
-It is entitled to great weight and respect in the interpretation of a statute is especially true under the
1973 Constitution (grave abuse of power during Martial Law), where some ministers or heads of
executive ministries or departments are also members of the Batasang Pambansa.
-members of the legislature should know the legislative intent and reflected that intent in his
construction of the law.
-it is not necessary for the courts of justice to apply such administrative construction, especially
if there is a clear error of law, abuse of power, lack of jurisdiction or grave abuse of discretion that
conflicts with the legislative enactment.
-the best interpreter of the law is usage
Construction of rules and regulations
-Rules and regulations issued by executive or administrative officers pursuant to, and as authorized by,
law have the force and effect of laws.
-the authorities are entitled to great weight by the court, as such, administrative agencies have
the power to interpret its own rules and those interpretation becomes part of the rules.
-Administrative agency has the power to interpret its own rules and such interpretation becomes part of
the rules.
-unless the said rules are considered as erroneous, unreasonable, or arbitrary the said rules are
considered as legal and the court shall recognize it. No one other than the maker can interpret the
intent of such regulation.

Reasons why contemporaneous construction is given much weight

-Contemporaneous construction is entitled to great weight because it comes from the particular branch
of government called upon to implement the law thus constructed.
 -the law recognizes such officials to have the capacity to understand and know the purpose of
the law, having that said they should be able to provide expert opinion. Their competence, expertness,
experience and informed judgement and the fact that they frequently are the drafters of the law they
interpret.
(1) it comes from the particular branch of government called upon to implement the law thus
construed.
(2) executive officials are presumed to have familiarized themselves with all the considerations
pertinent to the meaning and purpose of the law, and to have formed an independent, conscientious,
and competent expert opinion thereon.
(3) they are frequently the drafters of the law they interpret. In short, due to their competence,
expertness, experience, and informed judgment. And there is a need for certainty and predictability in
the law.

Legislative approval of administrative construction

-The legislature is presumed to have full knowledge of a contemporaneous or practice construction of a
statute by an administrative or executive officer charged with its enforcement.
-it may manifest in many ways, use of similar words in their import to the language of an earlier
law which had received a practical interpretation or amends a prior statute without providing anything
which would restrict change or nullify the previous contemporaneous construction.
-Legislative ratification or adoption of a contemporaneous construction may also be shown by the
legislature appropriating money for the officer designated to perform task pursuant to an interpretive
statute.
-It is an axiom of law that legislative ratification is equivalent to a mandate which is expressed in the
maxim, ratihabito acquiparatur mandate.
-Where the legislature has notice or knowledge of a construction placed upon a statue by an
executive officer charged with its implementation, without repudiating it, its silence is acquiescence
equivalent to consent to continue practice. There is an implied approval by its failure to change a
longstanding administrative construction.
-legislative ratification is equivalent to a mandate

Reenactment by legislature
-The principle of legislative approval by reenactment states that the reenactment of a statute, previously
given a contemporaneous construction.
-the construction of such statute by an executive officer called upon to implement the statute is
deemed to have been adopted by the legislature when it reenacted it in the substantially same
language, the legislature knew that such construction made prior its reenactment.
-There is much weight in the interpretation of a statute because there is an agreement between the
executive and the legislative department.
 -The reason for such is: there is an agreement between two departments – the legislative and
executive— to the meaning of the law, and it devolves upon the judiciary to give it deferential
treatment.
When contemporaneous construction disregarded
-The court may disregard contemporaneous construction, where there is no ambiguity in the law, where
the construction is clearly erroneous, where strong reason to the contrary exists, and where the court
has previously given the statute a different interpretation.
-if the contemporaneous construction is null and void the judiciary has the role to refine it and if
necessary, it must correct constitutional or statutory interpretation in the context of the interaction of
the three branches of govt.
-ultra vires means that it is beyond his power to do so.

Erroneous construction creates no rights; exceptions.

-If through misapprehension of the law an executive or administrative officer called upon to implement
it has erroneously applied and executed it, the error may be corrected when the true construction is
ascertained.
-doctrine of estoppel
The doctrine of estoppel is based upon the grounds of public policy, fair dealing, good faith and
justice, and its purpose is to forbid one to speak against his own act, representations, or commitments
to the injury of one to whom they were directed and who reasonably relied thereon. In other words,
they are estopped to not imply something because it does not align with the law.
-the court should not apply any interpretation about a wrong construction of law within any of
its variance.
-As a rule, an erroneous contemporaneous construction creates no vested right on the part of those
who relied upon, and followed, such construction.
-The error may be corrected when the true construction is ascertained. As a rule, an erroneous
contemporaneous construction creates no vested right on the part of those who relied upon and
followed such construction. A vested right may not arise from a wrong interpretation of a law by an
administrative or executive officer whose primary duty is to enforce, and not to construe, the law. And
the government is never estopped by the mistake or error on the part of its agents.
-The rule is not absolute but admits exceptions in the interest of justice and fair play.