East End Dwellings Co. Ltd. v. Finsbury Borough Council
Rule established
When a statute creates a legal fiction (by use of words "shall be deemed"), the court must carry the fiction to its logical conclusion but not beyond the purpose for which the fiction was created.
Facts
- War damage destroyed houses on the land
- Town and Country Planning Act 1947 deemed land with destroyed houses to still have houses "erected" on it for planning purposes
- Council sought to acquire the land using powers applicable to land with houses
- Company argued: the houses no longer physically existed
Issue
- How far must a statutory fiction (deeming provision) be carried?
Held
- Lord Asquith: "If you are told to assume a fact, you must do so with all its consequences"
- The fiction that houses are "erected" must be carried to its logical conclusion for the statutory purpose
- But the fiction cannot be extended to purposes beyond those for which it was created
- Council's power upheld within the scope of the planning fiction
Ratio Decidendi
When a statute says something "shall be deemed" to be the case, the court must assume the fictional fact to be real and draw all logical consequences from it. However, the fiction must not be pushed beyond the purpose for which it was created by the Legislature.
How to use it in an exam
- Leading authority on construction of deeming provisions / legal fictions
- Lord Asquith's dictum is quotable
- Key line: "In East End Dwellings v. Finsbury (1952), Lord Asquith stated that when told to assume a fact, 'you must do so with all its consequences,' but the fiction must not be pushed beyond its statutory purpose."
Source
Source: [1952] AC 109
This is an educational summary, not the judgment itself. Cite the reported version in professional or academic work.
Cited in study notes
Interpretation of StatutesMeaning of Interpretation and General PrinciplesConstruction of deeming provisions