Legal Definitions - teleological interpretation

Teleological interpretation is a way of interpreting something by looking at its purpose or goal. It is also known as purposive construction. For example, if you are trying to understand a law, you might use teleological interpretation to figure out what the lawmakers intended the law to achieve.

Let's say there is a law that says all new buildings must have wheelchair ramps. If you use teleological interpretation, you would look at the purpose of the law, which is to make sure that people with disabilities can access buildings. So, if a building is built without a wheelchair ramp, it would be breaking the law because it goes against the purpose of the law.

Another example of teleological interpretation is when you look at the purpose of a tool or object to understand how it works. For instance, if you are trying to use a can opener for the first time, you might use teleological interpretation to figure out how to use it by looking at its purpose, which is to open cans.