the Mischief Rule

The Mischief Rule is a legal principle used to interpret legislation. It guides courts to consider the problem or "mischief" that the law was intended to address when there's ambiguity in the words. Essentially, the court looks at the law's purpose, focusing on what issue the lawmakers aimed to correct, and then interprets the law in a way that best suppresses that mischief. This approach ensures laws are applied in a manner consistent with their original intent, especially when wording is unclear or broad.