Title 1, GENERAL PROVISIONS

A statute requiring a bond or undertaking with sureties to be given by any person, shall be construed to permit in lieu thereof a bond of indemnity or surety bond for the amount of such bond or undertaking, given by any indemnity or surety company authorized to do business in thi…

Every mention of, or reference to any hour or time in any statute, shall be construed with reference to and in accordance with the mean solar time of the 75th meridian of longitude west of Greenwich, commonly called eastern standard time, unless a different standard is therein ex…

When any period of time is referred to in any statute, such period in all cases, except as otherwise provided in section 1909 of this title (relating to publication for successive weeks) and section 1910 of this title (relating to computation of months) shall be so computed as to…

Whenever in any statute providing for the publishing of notices, the phrase "successive weeks" is used, weeks shall be construed as calendar weeks. The publication upon any day of such weeks shall be sufficient publication for that week, but at least five days shall elapse betwee…

Whenever in any statute the lapse of a number of months after or before a certain day is required, such number of months shall be computed by counting the months from such day, excluding the calendar month in which such day occurs, and shall include the day of the month in the la…

(a) Object and scope of construction of statutes.--The object of all interpretation and construction of statutes is to ascertain and effectuate the intention of the General Assembly. Every statute shall be construed, if possible, to give effect to all its provisions. (b) Unambigu…

In ascertaining the intention of the General Assembly in the enactment of a statute the following presumptions, among others, may be used: (1) That the General Assembly does not intend a result that is absurd, impossible of execution or unreasonable. (2) That the General Assembly…

(a) Grammatical errors and transposition of words.--Grammatical errors shall not vitiate a statute. A transposition of words and clauses may be resorted to where a sentence is without meaning as it stands. (b) Use of punctuation in construction.--In no case shall the punctuation …

The title and preamble of a statute may be considered in the construction thereof. Provisos shall be construed to limit rather than to extend the operation of the clauses to which they refer. Exceptions expressed in a statute shall be construed to exclude all others. The headings…

The provisions of every statute shall be severable. If any provision of any statute or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the statute, and the application of such provision to other persons or circumstances, shall not be affect…

No statute shall be construed to be retroactive unless clearly and manifestly so intended by the General Assembly.

Statutes uniform with those of other states shall be interpreted and construed to effect their general purpose to make uniform the laws of those states which enact them.

(a) Statutes in derogation of common law.--The rule that statutes in derogation of the common law are to be strictly construed, shall have no application to the statutes of this Commonwealth enacted finally after September 1, 1937. (b) Provisions subject to strict construction.--…

The provision in any statute for a penalty or forfeiture for its violation shall not be construed to deprive an injured person of the right to recover from the offender damages sustained by reason of the violation of such statute.

Whenever a penalty or forfeiture is provided for the violation of a statute, such penalty or forfeiture shall be construed to be for each such violation.

Whenever an intent to defraud is required in any statute in order to constitute an offense, the statute shall be construed to require only an intent to defraud any person or body politic.

(a) Meaning.--Statutes or parts of statutes are in pari materia when they relate to the same persons or things or to the same class of persons or things. (b) Construction.--Statutes in pari materia shall be construed together, if possible, as one statute.

Whenever a general provision in a statute shall be in conflict with a special provision in the same or another statute, the two shall be construed, if possible, so that effect may be given to both. If the conflict between the two provisions is irreconcilable, the special provisio…

Except as provided in section 1933 of this title (relating to particular controls general), whenever, in the same statute, several clauses are irreconcilable, the clause last in order of date or position shall prevail.

Whenever the provisions of two or more statutes enacted finally during the same General Assembly are irreconcilable, the statute latest in date of final enactment, and where two or more irreconcilable statutes are enacted finally on the same date, the statute bearing the highest …

Whenever the provisions of two or more statutes enacted finally by different General Assemblies are irreconcilable, the statute latest in date of final enactment shall prevail. Cross References. Section 1936 is referred to in section 1955 of this title.

(a) General rule.--A reference in a statute to a statute or to a regulation issued by a public body or public officer includes the statute or regulation with all amendments and supplements thereto and any new statute or regulation substituted for such statute or regulation, as in…

A reference in a statute to a governmental agency, department, board, commission or other public body or to a public officer includes an entity or officer which succeeds to substantially the same functions as those performed by such public body or officer on the effective date of…

The comments or report of the commission, committee, association or other entity which drafted a statute may be consulted in the construction or application of the original provisions of the statute if such comments or report were published or otherwise generally available prior …

In ascertaining the correct reading, status and interpretation of an amendatory statute, the matter inserted within brackets shall be omitted, and the matter in italics or underscored shall be read and interpreted as part of the statute.

Whenever any existing statute, incorporated into and repealed by a code, is also amended by other legislation enacted by the same General Assembly, such separate amendment shall be construed to be in force, notwithstanding the repeal by the code of the statute such other legislat…

Whenever a section or part of a statute is amended, the amendment shall be construed as merging into the original statute, become a part thereof, and replace the part amended, and the remainder of the original statute and the amendment shall be read together and viewed as one sta…

Whenever a statute has been more than once amended, the latest amendment shall be read into the original statute as previously amended and not into such statute as originally enacted. This rule applies whether or not the previous amendment is referred to and whether or not its la…

Whenever two or more amendments to the same provision of a statute are enacted at the same or different sessions, one amendment overlooking and making no reference to the other or others, the changes in the statute made by each shall be given effect and all the amendments shall b…

The repeal of an amendatory statute does not revive the corresponding provision or section of the original statute or of any prior amendment. Except as otherwise provided in section 1952 of this title (relating to effect of separate amendments on code provisions enacted by same G…

Provisions of a statute no longer effective because of having been deleted by an earlier amendment or otherwise shall not be construed as being revived by reenactment in an amendatory statute, unless it shall clearly appear by notice thereof in the title of the amendatory statute…

Whenever a statute reenacts a former statute, the provisions common to both statutes shall date from their first adoption. Such provisions only of the former statute as are omitted from the reenactment shall be deemed abrogated, and only the new or changed provisions shall be dee…

Whenever a statute is repealed and its provisions are at the same time reenacted in the same or substantially the same terms by the repealing statute, the earlier statute shall be construed as continued in active operation. All rights and liabilities incurred under such earlier s…

A statute which reenacts the provisions of an earlier statute shall not be construed to repeal an intermediate statute which modified but did not effect an amendment to such earlier statute. Such intermediate statute shall be construed to remain in force and to modify the reenact…

(a) Revision or exclusive system covering entire subject.--Whenever a statute purports to be a revision of all statutes upon a particular subject, or sets up a general or exclusive system covering the entire subject matter of a former statute and is intended as a substitute for s…

A statute shall not be deemed repealed because the reason for its passage no longer exists.

A statute shall not be deemed repealed by failure to use such statute.

Whenever a statute repeals any provision of another statute incorporated into a code adopted by the same General Assembly, the statute repealing the provision so incorporated into the code shall be construed to effect a repeal of the corresponding provision of the code. Applicabi…

Whenever a limitation or period of time, prescribed in any statute for acquiring a right or barring a remedy, or for any other purpose, has begun to run before a statute repealing such statute takes effect, and the same or any other limitation is prescribed in any other statute p…

(a) Existing rights and pending actions.--The repeal of any civil provisions of a statute shall not affect or impair any act done, or right existing or accrued, or affect any civil action pending to enforce any right under the authority of the statute repealed. Such action may be…

The repeal of a repealing statute shall not be construed to revive the statute originally repealed.

Whenever a statute which created a personal or property right in derogation of the common law is repealed as obsolete or by a code which does not contain an express provision with respect to such personal or property right, the repeal shall not be construed to revive the prior in…

The following words and phrases, when used in any statute finally enacted on or after September 1, 1937, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, shall have the meanings given to them in this section: "Action." Any suit or proceeding in any court of this Commonwealth. "Adm…