Cite as: 513 U. S. 561 (1995)
Thomas, J., dissenting
quires," 15 U. S. C. § 77b. This phrase indicates that Congress intended simply to provide a "default" meaning for "prospectus." Further, nothing in § 12(2) indicates that the "context otherwise requires" the use of a definition of "prospectus" other than the one provided by § 2(10). If anything, it is § 10's "context" that seems to require the use of a definition that is different from that of § 2(10).
Third, the dual use of "prospectus" in § 2(10), which both defines "prospectus" broadly and uses it as a term of art, makes clear that the statute is using the word in at least two different senses, and paves the way for such variations in the ensuing provisions. To adopt the majority's argument would force us to eliminate § 2(10) in favor of some narrower, common-law definition of "prospectus." Our mandate to interpret statutes does not allow us to recast Congress' handiwork so completely.
The majority transforms § 10 into the tail that wags the 1933 Act dog. An analogy will illustrate the point. Suppose that the Act regulates cars, and that § 2(10) of the Act defines a "car" as any car, motorcycle, truck, or trailer. Section 10 of this hypothetical statute then declares that a car shall have seatbelts, and § 5 states that it is unlawful to sell cars without seatbelts. Section 12(2) of this Act then creates a cause of action for misrepresentations that occur during the sale of a car. It is reasonable to conclude that §§ 5 and 10 apply only to what we ordinarily refer to as "cars," because it would be absurd to require motorcycles and trailers to have seatbelts. But the majority's reasoning would lead to the further conclusion that § 12(2) does not cover sales of motorcycles, when it is clear that the Act includes such sales.
C
Contrary to the majority's conclusion, it seems to me that the surrounding text of § 12(2) supports my reading. On its face, § 12(2) makes none of the usual distinctions between initial public offerings and aftermarket trading, or between
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