identifying the obligation to find the plain and obvious meanings of words and also to construe those same words in pari materia
How later courts described this case
- identifying the obligation to find the plain and obvious meanings of words and also to construe those same words in pari materia
- “This court presumes that the legislature enacts statutes ‘with full knowledge of the existing condition of the law and with reference to it. They are therefore to be construed in connection and in harmony with the existing law, and as part of a general and uniform system of jurisprudence[.]’” (quoting Civic Ass’n of Wyo. v. Ry. Motor Fuels, 57 Wyo. 213 , 116 P.2d 236, 245 (1941))
- “If we determine that the meaning is not subject to varying interpretations, that may end the exercise, although we may resort to extrinsic aids of interpretation, such as legislative history if available and rules of construction, to confirm the determination.”
- qu oting Ross v. Trustees of University of Wyoming, 31 Wyo. 464, 489, 228 P. 642, 651 (1924) and City of Laramie v. Facer, 814 P.2d 268, 270 (Wyo.1991)
Written by the judges who cited it.
The opinion
THOMAS, Justice,
concurring in part and dissenting in part.
I concur in that aspect of the opinion in which the court concludes to affirm the order of the Commission because substantial evidence supports the ruling that Parker Land & Cattle Co. failed to establish the source of the brucellosis. I dissent from the first aspect of the opinion of the court that the claim is not cognizable under the statute so far as the potential source of infection may be elk. In this regard, I join in the dissenting opinion of Justice Urbig-kit and the concurring opinion of Justice Cardine. I would permit cognizance of a claim for infection by bison as a taking by the State, but would not perceive it necessary to address the issue in light of the ruling as to the failure of proof on the part of the claimant.