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Robert's Rules of Order Revised Robert's Rules of Order Revised by General Henry M. Robert 1915 Version, Public Domain [Editor's Note: The copyright on the original 1915 version has expired. However, the modifications and enhancements to this work are Copyright © 1996 Constitution Society. Permission is hereby granted to any person to copy and use this material on a non-profit basis with attribution, and in particular, with the retention of links to the site of the Constitution Society or its successors on the World Wide Web. One of the modifications made to the original document is the substitution for page numbers of section and paragraph numbers, using the format mm:nn, where mm is the section number and nn the paragraph number. Footnotes have been numbered and moved to the end of sections. The Order of Precedence of Motions and the Table of Rules Relating to Motions have also been reformatted and revised to adapt them to the needs of an online document.] Table of Contents Order of Precedence of Motions. (OPM) Table of Rules Relating to Motions. (TRM) Preface. (PRE) Introduction. (INT) Parliamentary Law (PAR) Plan of the Work (WRK) Definitions (DEF) Part I.- Rules of Order. Art. I.- How Business is Conducted in Deliberative Assemblies. 1. Introduction of Business 2. What Precedes Debate 3. Obtaining the Floor 4. Motions and Resolutions 5. Seconding Motions 6. Stating the Question 7. Debate 8. Secondary Motions 9. Putting the Question and Announcing the Vote 10. Proper Motions to Use to Accomplish Certain Objects Art. II.- General Classification of Motions. http://www.constitution.org/rror/rror--00.htm (1 of 4) [1/18/2001 10:09:50 AM] Robert's Rules of Order Revised 11. Main or Principal Motions 12. Subsidiary Motions 13. Incidental Motions 14. Privileged Motions 15. Some Main and Unclassified Motions Art. III.- Privileged Motions. 16. Fix the Time to which the Assembly shall Adjourn 17. Adjourn 18. Take a Recess 19. Questions of Privilege 20. General and Special Orders and a Call for the Orders of the Day Art. IV.- Incidental Motions. 21. Questions of Order and Appeal 22. Suspension of the Rules 23. Objection to the Consideration of a Question 24. Division of a Question, and Consideration by Paragraph or Seriatim 25. Division of the Assembly, and Motions relating to Methods of Voting, or to Closing or Reopening the Polls 26. Motions relating to Methods of Making, or to Closing or to Reopening Nominations 27. Requests growing out of Business Pending or that has just been pending, as, a Parliamentary Inquiry, a Request for Information, for Leave to Withdraw a Motion to Read Papers, to be Excused from a Duty, or for any other Privilege Art. V.- Subsidiary Motions. 28. Lay on the Table 29. The Previous Question 30. Limit or Extend Limits of Debate 31. Postpone Definitely, or to a Certain Time 32. Commit or Refer, or Recommit 33. Amend 34. Postpone Indefinitely Art. VI.- Some Main and Unclassified Motions. 35. Take from the Table 36. Reconsider 37. Rescind http://www.constitution.org/rror/rror--00.htm (2 of 4) [1/18/2001 10:09:50 AM] Robert's Rules of Order Revised 38. Renewal of a Motion 39. Ratify 40. Dilatory, Absurd, or Frivolous Motions 41. Call of the House Art. VII.- Debate. 42. Debate 43. Decorum in Debate 44. Closing and Preventing Debate 45. Principles of Debate and Undebatable Motions Art. VIII.- Vote. 46. Voting 47. Votes that are Null and Void even if Unanimous 48. Motions requiring more than a Majority Vote Art. IX.- Committees and Boards. 49. Committees Classified 50. Boards of Managers, etc., and Executive Committees 51. Ex-Officio Members of Boards and Committees 52. Committees, Special and Standing 53. Reception of Reports 54. Adoption or Acceptance of Reports 55. Committee of the Whole 56. As if in Committee of the Whole 57. Informal Consideration Art. X.- The Officers and the Minutes. 58. Chairman or President 59. Secretary or Clerk 60. The Minutes 61. Executive Secretary 62. Treasurer Art. XI.- Miscellaneous. 63. Session 64. Quorum 65. Order of Business http://www.constitution.org/rror/rror--00.htm (3 of 4) [1/18/2001 10:09:50 AM] Robert's Rules of Order Revised 66. Nominations and Elections 67. Constitutions, By-laws, Rules of Order, and Standing Rules 68. Amendments of Constitutions, By-laws, and Rules of Order Part II.- Organization, Meetings, and Legal Rights of Assemblies. Art. XII.- Organization and Meetings. 69. An Occasional or Mass Meeting (a) Organization (b) Adoption of Resolutions (c) Committee to draft Resolutions (d) Semi-Permanent Mass Meeting 70. A Permanent Society. (a) First Meeting (b) Second Meeting (c) Regular Meeting 71. Meeting of a Convention. (a) An Organized Convention (b) A Convention not yet Organized Art. XIII.- Legal Rights of Assemblies and Trial of Their Members. 72. Right of an Assembly to Punish its Members 73. Right of an Assembly to Eject any one from its Place of Meeting 74. Rights of Ecclesiastical Tribunals 75. Trial of Members of Societies Plan for Study of Parliamentary Law. (PLN) Introduction Lesson Outlines (LES) Index (NDX) Constitution Society Home Page http://www.constitution.org/rror/rror--00.htm (4 of 4) [1/18/2001 10:09:50 AM] Robert's Rules of Order Revised - Order of Precedence of Motions ORDER OF PRECEDENCE OF MOTIONS. [Editor's note: This is a modified version of the original, to adapt it to the needs of an online document.] The ordinary motions rank as follows, the lowest in rank being at the bottom and the highest at the top of the list. When any one of them is immediately pending the motions above it in the list are in order, and those below are out of order. 1 2 3 4 5 Motion - X a X - Fix the Time to which to Adjourn. - X b - - Adjourn. - X c X - Take a Recess. - X - - - Raise a Question of Privilege. - X - - - Call for the Orders of the Day. - - - - - Lay on the Table. - - - - X Previous Question. - - - - X Limit or Extend Limits of Debate. X - - X - Postpone to a Certain Time. X - - X - Commit or Refer. X - - X - Amend. X - - - - Postpone Indefinitely. X - - X - A Main Motion. Columns: 1 - Debatable 2 - Usually Privileged 3 - Not always privileged: a - Privileged only when made while another question is pending, and in an assembly that has made no provision for another meeting on the same or the next day. b - Loses its privileged character and is a main motion if in any way qualified, or if its effect, if adopted, is to dissolve the assembly without any provision for its meeting again. c - Privileged only when made while other business is pending. 4 - Can be amended 5 - Require a 2/3 vote for their adoption; the others require only a majority. http://www.constitution.org/rror/rror--01.htm [1/18/2001 10:09:52 AM] Robert's Rules of Order Revised - Table of Rules Relating to Motions TABLE OF RULES RELATING TO MOTIONS Answering 300 Questions in Parliamentary Practice [Editor's note: This is a modified version of the original, to adapt it to the needs of an online document.] Explanation of the Table. -- The rules at the head of the 8 columns apply to all original main motions, and to all other cases except where a star (*) or a figure indicates that the motion is an exception to these rules. The star shows that the exact opposite of the rule at the head of the column applies to the motion, and a figure refers to a note which explains the extent of the exception. For example, "Lay on the Table"; the Table shows that §28 of the Manual treats of this motion; that it is "undebatable" and "cannot be amended"; that "no subsidiary motion can be applied" to it; and that it "cannot be reconsidered"; -- the fact that the 4 other columns have no stars or figures shows that the rules at the head of these columns apply to this motion, to Lay on the Table, the same as to original main motions. Columns: § - Section number 1 - Debatable 2 - Debate Confined to Pending Questions 3 - Can be Amended 4 - Subsidiary Motions can be Applied 5 - Can be Reconsidered 6 - Requires only a Majority Vote 7 - Must be Seconded 8 - Out of Order when Another has Floor N - Note below § 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 N Motion 17 * - * * * - - - 1 Adjourn (when privileged) 54 - - - - - - - - - Adopt (Accept or Agree to) a Report 67 - - - - 2 - - - - Adopt Constitutions, By-laws, Rules of Order 67 - - - - - - - - - Adopt Standing Rules 33 4 - - - - - - - 3 Amend 33 4 - * - - - - - - Amend an Amendment 68 - - - - 2 5 - - - Amend Constitutions, By-laws, Rules of Order 67 - - - - - 6 - - - Amend Standing Rules http://www.constitution.org/rror/rror--02.htm (1 of 5) [1/18/2001 10:09:56 AM] Robert's Rules of Order Revised - Table of Rules Relating to Motions 21 * - * - - - - * 7 Appeal, relating to Indecorum, etc. 21 - - * - - - - * - Appeal, all other cases 33 - - * - - - * - - Blanks, Filling 32 - - - - 8 - - - - Commit or Refer, or Recommit 30 * - - - - * - - 9 Debate, to Close, Limit, or Extend 25 * - * * * - * * - Division of the Assembly 24 * - - - * - 10 10 - Division of the Question 16 11 - - - - - - - 1 Fix the Time to which to Adjourn 57 - - * - 2 - - - - Informal Consideration of a Question 28 * - * * * - - - - Lay on the Table 21 * - * * - - - - - Leave to Continue Speaking after Indecorum 11 - - - - - - - - - Main Motion or Question 26 - - * - * - * - - Nominations, to Make 26 * - - - * * - - - Nominations, to Close 26 * - - - 2 - - - - Nominations, to Reopen 23 * - * * 2 12 * * - Objection to Consideration of a Question 21 * - * * * - * * - Order, Questions of 20 - - - - - * - - - Order, to Make a Special 20 * - * * * - * * - Orders of the Day, to Call for 20 - - - - - - - - - Order of the
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