Also known as: legislative intention · legislative intents · congressional intent · statutory intent · legislative purpose · intent of the legislature
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
The design or plan that the legislature had at the time of enacting a statute. Courts consult legislative intent to resolve ambiguities in statutory text and to determine whether a statute imposes absolute liability or excludes particular defenses.
Lamar Lewis faced prosecution after breaking into a warehouse to rescue a trapped coworker from a fire. He argued that his conduct was necessary to avoid greater harm. The court examined the statute defining the offense and concluded that the legislature had plainly intended to exclude the justification defense in that specific situation, so the defense failed.
Luna Lang challenged a state criminal statute that restricted certain medical procedures. She argued that the legislature could not have intended the statute to apply after viability. The court reviewed the statutory text and historical context to determine the legislature's purpose in protecting potential life.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Levi Lowe received a life sentence under a recidivist statute after multiple nonviolent convictions. He contended that the legislature did not intend such a severe penalty for his offenses. The court assessed whether the statutory scheme reflected a legislative purpose to impose disproportionate punishment.
Lotus Pharmaceuticals challenged a state commission order banning promotional advertising by utilities. The company asserted that the legislature had not intended the regulation to reach truthful commercial speech. The court analyzed the statute's purpose to determine the scope of the restriction.
Lena Lawson lived with her grandson and great-grandson in a single-family zone. The city enforced an ordinance limiting occupancy to narrowly defined family units. She claimed the legislature did not intend the definition to exclude extended family living arrangements that served child-rearing needs.
Lily Lopez refused to salute the flag during a required school exercise. School officials enforced the rule as a condition of attendance. She argued that the legislature could not have intended to compel expression of belief against individual conscience.
Courts examine the full text of the statute, its structure, and extrinsic materials such as committee reports and floor debates to ascertain the legislature's design. The goal is to effectuate the purpose the legislature had when enacting the provision.
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A non-Code statute imposes absolute liability for a material element when the legislature's purpose to dispense with any culpability requirement plainly appears in the text. In that event the offense is reclassified as a violation rather than a crime.
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Absent clear legislative intent to impose multiple punishments, courts presume that cumulative punishments are not authorized for offenses that constitute the same crime under the Blockburger test.
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Courts must confirm that the subpoena serves a legitimate legislative purpose and that the legislative objective justifies involving the President rather than alternative sources.
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Retroactive tax legislation satisfies due process if its retroactive application is supported by a legitimate legislative purpose furthered by rational means, such as correcting a loophole over a short period.
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…new Connecticut Statute, Pub. Act No. 1 (May 1972 special session), declaring it to be the public policy of the State and the legislative intent "to protect and preserve human life from the moment of conception." [^maj-56]: Edelstein 16. [^maj-57]: Lader 97-99; D. Feldman, Birth Control in Jewish Law 251-294 (1968). For a stricter…