Robert's Rules of Order: The Standard Guide to Parliamentary Procedure

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About the Author Born in New York City, Will Eisner (1917–2005) was the author of the legendary comic strip The Spirit, as well as 15 graphic novels and three influential instructional textbooks. The comic industry’s top awards, the Eisner Awards, are named in his honor. Read more Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. INTRODUCTION   PARLIAMENTARY LAW   Parliamentary Law refers originally to the customs and rules of conducting business in the English Parliament; and thence to the customs and rules of our own legislative assemblies. In England these usages of Parliament form a part of the unwritten law of the land, and in our own legislative bodies they are of authority in all cases where they do not conflict with existing rules or precedents.   But as a people we have not the respect which the English have for customs and precedents, and are always ready for such innovations as we think are improvements, and hence changes have been and are constantly being made in the written rules which our legislative bodies have found best to adopt. As each house adopts its own rules, it results that the two houses of the same legislature do not always agree in their practice; even in Congress the order of precedence of motions is not the same in both houses, and the Previous Question is admitted in the House of Representatives, but not in the Senate. As a consequence of this, the exact method of conducting business in any particular legislative body is to be obtained only from the Legislative Manual of that body.   The vast number of societies, political, literary, scientific, benevolent and religious, formed all over the land, though not legislative, are deliberative in character, and must have some system of conducting business, and some rules to govern their proceedings, and are necessarily subject to the common parliamentary law where it does not conflict with their own special rules, But as their knowledge of parliamentary law has been obtained from the usages in this country, rather than from the customs of Parliament, it has resulted that these societies have followed the customs of our own legislative bodies, and our people have thus been educated under a system of parliamentary law which is peculiar to this country, and yet so well established as to supersede the English parliamentary law as the common law of ordinary deliberative assemblies.   The practice of the National House of Representatives should have the same force in this country as the usages of the House of Commons have in England, in determining the general principles of the common parliamentary law of the land; but it does not follow that in every matter of detail the rules of Congress can be appealed to as the common law governing every deliberative assembly. In these matters of detail, the rules of each House of Congress are adapted to their own peculiar wants, and are of no force whatever in other assemblies. But upon all great parliamentary questions, such as what motions can be made, what is their order of precedence, which can be debated, what is their effect, etc., the common law of the land is settled by the practice of the United States House of Representatives, and not by that of the English Parliament, the United States Senate, or any other body.   While in extreme cases there is no difficulty in deciding the question as to whether the practice of Congress determines the common parliamentary law, yet between these extremes there must necessarily be a large number of doubtful cases upon which there would be great difference of opinion, and to avoid the serious difficulties always arising from a lack of definiteness in the law, every deliberative assembly should imitate our legislative bodies in adopting Rules of Order for the conduct of their business.   PLAN OF THE WORK   This Manual is prepared to partially meet this want in deliberative assemblies that are not legislative in their character. It has been made sufficiently complete to answer for the rules of an assembly until they see fit to adopt special rules conflicting with and superseding any of its rules of detail, such as the Order of Business [§ 44], etc. Even in matters of detail the practice of Congress is followed, wherever it is not manifestly unsuited to ordinary assemblies; and in such cases, in Part I, there will be found, in a footnote, the Congressional practice. In the important matters referred to above, in which the practice of the House of Representatives settles the common parliamentary law of the country, this Manual strictly conforms to such practice.   The Manual is divided into three distinct parts, each complete in itself, and a Table of Rules [this page] containing a large amount of information in a tabular form, for easy reference in the midst of the business of a meeting.   Part I contains a set of Rules of Order systematically arranged, as shown in the Table of Contents. Each one of the forty-five sections is complete in itself, so that one unfamiliar with the work cannot be misled in examining any particular subject. Cross references are freely used to save repeating from other sections, and by this means the reader, without using the index, is referred to everything in the Rules of Order that has any bearing upon the subject he is investigating. The motions are arranged under the usual classes, in their order of rank, but in the Index under the word motion will be found an alphabetical list of all the motions generally used.   The following is stated   in reference to each motion:   Of what motions it takes precedence (that is, what motions may be pending, and yet it be in order to make and consider this motion).   To what motions it yields (that is, what motions may be made and considered while this motion is pending).   Whether it is debatable or not (all motions being debatable unless the contrary is stated).   Whether it can be amended or not.   In case the motion can have no subsidiary motion applied to it, the fact is stated [see Adjourn, § 11, for an example: the meaning is, that the particular motion, to adjourn, for example, cannot be laid on the table, postponed, committed or amended].   The effect of the motion if adopted, whenever it could possibly be misunderstood.   The form of stating the question when peculiar, and all other information necessary to enable one to understand the question.   Part II is a Parliamentary Primer, giving very simple illustrations of the methods of organizing and conducting different kinds of meetings, stating the very words used by the chairman and speakers in making and putting various motions; it also gives, briefly, the duties of the officers, and forms of minutes and of reports of the treasurer and committees; it classifies the motions into eight classes according to their object, and then takes up separately each class and compares those in it, showing under what circumstances each motion should be used.   Part III consists of a few pages devoted to miscellaneous matters that should be understood by members of deliberative assemblies, such as the important but commonly misunderstood subjects of the Legal Rights of Deliberative Assemblies and Ecclesiastical Tribunals, etc.   DEFINITIONS AND COMMON ERRORS   In addition to the terms defined above (taking precedence of, yielding to and applying to, see p. 22), there are other terms that are liable to be misunderstood, to which attention should be called.   Meeting and Session.   For the distinction between these terms, see first note to § 42. Previous Question.   The effect of this much misunderstood motion is briefly stated in the eighth note to the Table of Rules, p. 10; full explanation is given in § 20. Substitute.   This motion is one form of an amendment. The five forms of an amendment are shown in the third note to the Tables of Rules, p. 10 and are more fully explained in § 23.   Shall the Question be Discussed?   This is a common form in some societies of stating the question on the consideration of a subject. It is very apt to convey a wrong impression of its effect, which is, if negatived, to dismiss the question for that session, as shown in § 15.   Accepting a Report.   This is the same as adopting it, is confounded by many with receiving a report. [See note to § 30 for common errors in acting upon reports.]   The terms Congress and H.R., when used in this Manual, refer to the U.S. House of Representatives.   The word Assembly, when occurring in forms of motions (as in an Appeal, § 14), should be replaced by the special term used to designate the particular assembly—as, for instance, “Society,” or “Convention,” or “Board.” Read more