parliamentary procedure
Parliamentary procedure is the accepted rules, ethics, and customs governing meetings of an assembly or organization. Its object is to allow orderly deliberation upon questions of interest to the organization and thus to arrive at the sense ...
, a point of order occurs when someone draws attention to a rules violation in a meeting of a
deliberative assembly
A deliberative assembly is a meeting of members who use parliamentary procedure.
Etymology
In a speech to the electorate at Bristol in 1774, Edmund Burke described the British Parliament as a "deliberative assembly," and the expression became ...
.
Explanation and uses
In '' Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised'' (RONR), a point of order may be raised if the rules appear to have been broken. This may interrupt a speaker during debate, or anything else if the breach of the rules warrants it. The point is resolved before business continues.
The point of order calls upon the
chair
A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. They may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vari ...
to make a ruling. The chair may rule on the point of order or submit it to the judgment of the assembly. If the chair accepts the point of order, it is said to be ruled "well taken". If not, it is said to be ruled "not well taken".
Generally, a point of order must be raised at the time the rules are broken or else it would be too late. For example, if a
motion
In physics, motion is the phenomenon in which an object changes its position with respect to time. Motion is mathematically described in terms of displacement, distance, velocity, acceleration, speed and frame of reference to an observer and m ...
was made and discussion began on it, it would be too late to raise a point of order that the motion was not seconded. If such a motion was adopted without a second, it remains valid and not having a second becomes irrelevant.
Exceptions to the rule that a point of order must be raised at the time of violation include that a point of order may be raised at any time a motion was adopted in violation of the
bylaws
A by-law (bye-law, by(e)law, by(e) law), or as it is most commonly known in the United States bylaws, is a set of rules or law established by an organization or community so as to regulate itself, as allowed or provided for by some higher authorit ...
or applicable law, in conflict with a previously adopted motion (unless adopted by the vote to rescind it), or in violation of a fundamental principle of parliamentary law.
The ruling of the chair may be appealed to the assembly in most cases. A
majority vote
A majority, also called a simple majority or absolute majority to distinguish it from related terms, is more than half of the total.Dictionary definitions of ''majority'' aMerriam-Websterrequest for information or a parliamentary inquiry. If a member asks such a question, the chair should treat the question as the appropriate request.
Legislative use
Australia
Deriving from British practice, in the
Australian House of Representatives
The House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the upper house being the Senate. Its composition and powers are established in Chapter I of the Constitution of Australia.
The term of members of ...
it continues to be customary for a member raising a point of order while the House is voting to hold a sheet of paper over the top of their head.
India
In the Indian Parliament, both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, a point of order can raised in relation to the business before the House by any member of the parliament. The decision of the Chair is final and no debate is allowed on the point of order, though the Chair may hear members before giving the decision.
Ireland
In the Irish
Oireachtas
The Oireachtas (, ), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the bicameral parliament of Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of:
*The President of Ireland
*The two houses of the Oireachtas ( ga, Tithe an Oireachtais):
** Dáil Éireann ...
(parliament), a point of order can be used in relation to order in the assembly. However, the ruling of the chair in this assembly cannot be appealed.
United Kingdom
Until 1998 in the
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England.
The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 65 ...
, it was required that a member raising a point of order while the House is
voting
Voting is a method by which a group, such as a meeting or an electorate, can engage for the purpose of making a collective decision or expressing an opinion usually following discussions, debates or election campaigns. Democracies elect holde ...
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and po ...
, the chair's ruling on a point of order may be appealed by any Senator. Points of order with regard to the Budget Act or annual budget resolution may be waived by of the Senate's entire membership. Rule XVI, which prohibits normal legislation in appropriations legislation, may be waived by of the Senate.
The
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
also allows points of order and appeals, although they are very rare following the abolishment of open rules in 2016, as they are routinely waived by the
United States House Committee on Rules
The Committee on Rules, or more commonly, the Rules Committee, is a committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is responsible for the rules under which bills will be presented to the House of Representatives, unlike other commit ...
.
See also
*
Appeal (motion) In parliamentary procedure, a motion to appeal from the decision of the chair is used to challenge a ruling of the chair.
Explanation and Use
The most common occasions for the motion to appeal are when the chair mis-assigns the floor or incorrectly ...
*
Nuclear option
In the United States Senate, the nuclear option is a parliamentary procedure that allows the Senate to override a standing rule by a simple majority, avoiding the two-thirds supermajority normally required to invoke cloture on a resolution ...