Distingue tempora et concordabis jura - Distinguish times and you will harmonize laws.

Dura lex sed lex - The law may be harsh, but that is the law.

Ejusdem generis - Of the same kind or specie.

Exceptio firmat regulam in casibus non exceptis - A thing not being excepted must be regarded as coming within the purview of the general rule.

Ex dolo malo non oritur actio - No man can be allowed to found a  claim upon his own wrongdoing.

Expressio unius est exclusio alterius - The express mention of one person, thing or consequence implies the exclusion of all others.

Expressum facit cessare tacitum= What is expressed puts an end to that which is implied.

Ex necessitate legis - By necessary implication of law.

Casus omissus pro omisso habendus est - A person, object or thing omitted from an enumeration must be held to have been ommitted intentionally.

Cessante ratione legis, cessat et ipsa lex - When the reason of the law ceases, the law itself ceases.

Contemporanea expositio est optima et fortissima in lege - The contemporary construction is strongest in law.

Collection of Maxims starting with the letter “A” and its meanings.

Absoluta sentencia expositore non indiget - When language of law is clear, no explanation of it is required.

Actus me invito factus non est meus actus - An act done by me against my will is not my act.

Actus non facit reum, nisi mens sit rea - The act itself does not make a man guilty unless his intention were so.

Ad proximum antecedens fiat relatio nisi impediatur sententia - Relative words refer to the nearest antecedents, unless the context otherwise requires.

Argumentum a contrario - Negative- Opposite doctrine.

G.R. NO. L-32717, November 26, 1970

FACTS OF THE CASE:

Petitioner, a candidate for the position of delegate to the Constitutional Convention, impugns in his special civil action for prohibition, the act of respondent COMELEC in prohibiting him from using jingles in his mobile units equipped with sound systems and loud speakers, as violative of his constitutional right to free speech. Respondent however contends it has authority to impose such prohibition under section 12(E) of the Constitutional Convention Act (R.A. No. 6132), which makes unlawful the distribution, as electoral propaganda gadgets of “pens, lighters,flashlights, athletic goods or material, wallets, bandanas, shirts, hats, matches, cigarettes and the like”

ISSUE:

Whether “jingles” falls down on the prohibited electoral propaganda gadgets of R.A. No. 6132.

RULING:

For respondent Commission, the last three words sufficed to justify such an order. We view the matter differently. What was done cannot merit our approval under the well-known principle of ejusdem generis, the general words following any enumeration being applicable only to things of the same kind or class as those specifically referred to. It is quite apparent that what was contemplated in the Act ws the distribution of gadgets of the kind referred to as means of inducement to obtain a favorable vote for the candidate responsible for distribution.

Note: The phrase “pens, lighters, flashlights, athletic goods or material, wallets, bandanas, shirts, hats, matches, cigarettes and the like” refers to souvenir items and “jingle” is only an abstract act.