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Interesting legal loopholes and strange laws!

I was wondering if anyone has interesting legal loophole cases / stories to share?

I don't know if you learn about them at university but I just find them really interesting! I was reading one about tax loopholes previously and made me think.

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Reply 1
There are tonnes.

Many of which a lot of people don't know about - that is why they are so effective. Once word is out on them and people start to abuse them on a large scale, it is then in the interests of the government to change things.
Original post by cocacola2
There are tonnes.

Many of which a lot of people don't know about - that is why they are so effective. Once word is out on them and people start to abuse them on a large scale, it is then in the interests of the government to change things.


Well done, you've just defined what a loophole is.
I like this article on the worlds strangest laws. I'm not sure they're all really "loopholes" though.

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/law/article2251280.ece

I think the pregnant womans right to relieve herself in a policemans hat is my favourite.
Reply 4
Original post by ritchie888

Original post by ritchie888
Well done, you've just defined what a loophole is.


No I haven't.

A loophole is (loosely), in my opinion, a provision which allows people/organisations to act against the purpose of the law without actually breaking the law.

I was merely stating that there are many such provisions which are unknown to most people. On the other hand there are many that are known to most people. That has nothing to do with the definition of a loophole.
Reply 5
Well it is legal to kill any Welshman in Chester city walls on the first Sunday of the month (market day) providing it is done with a longbow. Unfortunately it is a byelaw and has no defence against murder which is pretty disappointing :frown:
Plenty of tax loopholes :biggrin:
Reply 7
Original post by Erich Hartmann
Plenty of tax loopholes :biggrin:


lol, likewise.

The film investment scheme has it's benefits.
Original post by quattro94
Well it is legal to kill any Welshman in Chester city walls on the first Sunday of the month (market day) providing it is done with a longbow. Unfortunately it is a byelaw and has no defence against murder which is pretty disappointing :frown:


Disappointing ?! would you like to kill a welshman then haha :smile: . Ive also heard of one like this , something like , its illegal for a welshman to be out after midnight in some english citys . Why is it always the welsh! ? lol
Reply 9
My favourite strange law is that in the 18th century, in London, it was illegal to impersonate an Egyptian.
Well in Scots law you can kill someone if you find out they've had an affair with your spouse, but it has to be done in the heat of the moment and you can't have time to think about it. So you would only be charged with voluntary culpable homocide rather than murder.
Reply 11
Original post by Jordanaimee
Disappointing ?! would you like to kill a welshman then haha :smile: . Ive also heard of one like this , something like , its illegal for a welshman to be out after midnight in some english citys . Why is it always the welsh! ? lol


The reason we are so down on the welsh is that every couple of decades or so they would get pissed off at our big castles and go pillage, burn rape and destroy a few towns in protest. Soooooo we used it as an excuse to shoot them. After they had come and supplied our markets with a bit of trading. Aren't we english nice :tongue:
Reply 12
You can shoot a Scotsman on the bar walls of York with a longbow on a Sunday providing he is wearing a kilt. Again it's a bylaw, I have 2 longbows so if it wasn't it could get interesting.
Reply 13
Original post by Erich Hartmann
Plenty of tax loopholes :biggrin:


Any examples?


Original post by tobeconfirmed
I think the pregnant womans right to relieve herself in a policemans hat is my favourite.


That was is just :lolwut: :rofl:
Reply 14
Was just wondering, how does "bylaw" work?
Reply 15
If you kill someone as a result of PMS, you can be declared insane... essentially.
Reply 16
Original post by IceWater
Was just wondering, how does "bylaw" work?


I think it's one of those conventions of old law which is overridden by more current statute law but because of the poor accessibility of every part of the British Constitution they aren't removed.

(Don't take my word for this, I'm not 100%)
Original post by quattro94
The reason we are so down on the welsh is that every couple of decades or so they would get pissed off at our big castles and go pillage, burn rape and destroy a few towns in protest. Soooooo we used it as an excuse to shoot them. After they had come and supplied our markets with a bit of trading. Aren't we english nice :tongue:


How very kind of you haha :smile:
Original post by tvdx
My favourite strange law is that in the 18th century, in London, it was illegal to impersonate an Egyptian.


Not only illegal but a capital offence, I think you'll find! Sadly, we have no records of anyone being executed for it AFAIK....
Original post by IceWater
Was just wondering, how does "bylaw" work?



Original post by Wattsy
I think it's one of those conventions of old law which is overridden by more current statute law but because of the poor accessibility of every part of the British Constitution they aren't removed.

(Don't take my word for this, I'm not 100%)


No, a by-law is a law that only applies in a specific local area, normally passed by a local council under the authority of a law passed by parliament - which often means it requires ministerial approval first. Obviously the precise procedures were probably a bit different (!) in the middle ages, but basically a local law.

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