The Statute Law Revision Act 1878 (41 & 42 Vict. c. 79) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that repealed for the United Kingdom enactments from 1707 to 1868 which had ceased to be in force or had become necessary. The act was intended, in particular, to facilitate the preparation of the revised edition of the statutes, then in progress.
In the United Kingdom, acts of Parliament remain in force until expressly repealed. Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England, published in the late 18th-century, raised questions about the system and structure of the common law and the poor drafting and disorder of the existing statute book.
From 1810 to 1825, The Statutes of the Realm was published, providing the first authoritative collection of acts. The first statute law revision act was not passed until 1856 with the Repeal of Obsolete Statutes Act 1856 (19 & 20 Vict. c. 64). This approach â focusing on removing obsolete laws from the statute book followed by consolidation â was proposed by Peter Locke King MP, who had been highly critical of previous commissions' approaches, expenditures, and lack of results.
The bill had its first reading in the House of Lords on 17 June 1878, introduced by the Lord Chancellor, Hugh Cairns, 1st Earl Cairns. The bill had its second reading in the House of Lords on 8 July 1878 and was committed to a committee of the whole house, which met and reported on 9 July 1878, with amendments. The bill had its third reading in the House of Lords on 9 and passed, without amendments.
The bill had its first reading in the House of Commons on 13 July 1878. The bill had its second reading in the House of Commons on 15 July 1878 and was committed to a committee of the whole house, which met on 7 August 1877 and reported on 8 August 1878, with amendments. The amended bill had its third reading in the House of Commons on 9 August 1878 and passed, without amendments.
The amended bill was considered and agreed to by the House of Lords on 14 August 1877.
The bill was granted royal assent on 16 August 1877.
The act was intended, in particular, to facilitate the preparation of a revised edition of the statutes.
Sections 2 and 3 of, and the schedules to, the act, were repealed by section 1 of, and schedule 1 to, the Statute Law Revision Act 1894 (57 & 58 Vict. c. 56).
The act was repealed for the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man by group 1 of part IX of schedule 1 to the Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1998.
The act was retained for the Republic of Ireland by section 2(2)(a) of, and part 4 of schedule 1 to, the Statute Law Revision Act 2007.
Section 1 of the act repealed 93 enactments, listed in the schedule to the act, across six categories:
Section 1 of the act included several safeguards to ensure that the repeal does not negatively affect existing rights or ongoing legal matters. Specifically, any legal rights, privileges, or remedies already obtained under the repealed laws, as well as any legal proceedings or principles established by them, remain unaffected. Section 1 of the act also ensured that repealed enactments that have been incorporated into other laws would continue to have legal effect in those contexts. Moreover, the repeal would not revive any former rights, offices, or jurisdictions that had already been abolished.
Section 2 of the act revived 5 acts repealed by the Statute Law Revision Act 1873 (36 & 37 Vict. c. 91) and the Statute Law Revision Act 1875 (38 & 39 Vict. c. 66).
Section 3 of the act replaced the text "The Schedule" in the partial repeal of the Industrial Schools Act 1866 (29 & 30 Vict.) for "The First Schedule".