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In
parliamentary procedure
Parliamentary procedures are the accepted Procedural law, rules, ethics, and Norm (sociology), customs governing meetings of an deliberative assembly, assembly or organization. Their object is to allow orderly deliberation upon questions of inte ...
, a special rule of order is a rule adopted by the organization that relates to procedure or to the duties of officers within meetings.
Explanation and use
Special rules of order (with a few exceptions) supersede the rules in an adopted
parliamentary authority
A parliamentary authority is a book of rules for conducting business (parliamentary procedure) in deliberative assemblies. Several different books have been used by legislative assemblies and by organizations' deliberative bodies.
Application to ...
such as
Robert's Rules of Order
''Robert's Rules of Order'', often simply referred to as ''Robert's Rules'', is a manual of parliamentary procedure by U.S. Army officer Henry Martyn Robert (1837–1923). "The object of Rules of Order is to assist an assembly to accomplish the ...
. These rules continue in existence from one meeting to the next.
Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised (RONR)
Special rules can be adopted by a two-thirds vote with previous notice or a
majority of the entire membership
A supermajority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level of support which is greater than the threshold of one-half used for a simple majority. Supermajority rules in a democracy can help to prevent a majority from eroding fun ...
of the group. In conventions, a mixture of standing and special rules that are adopted at the start of the convention are called "convention standing rule" in ''RONR''. These, when adopted as a "package" generally require a two-thirds vote.
The Standard Code (TSC)
''
The Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure
''The Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure'' (formerly the ''Sturgis Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure'' by Alice Sturgis) is a book of rules of order. It is the second most popular parliamentary authority in the United States after ...
'' (''TSC''), refer to these types of rules as "standing rules", and do not require a simple majority vote without previous notice.
[ (TSC)]
One of the most common types of these rules is the rule to set limits on the amount of time, or the number of times, a member may speak in debate or to prohibit some type of motion.
Related concepts
*"
Standing rules" in ''RONR'' adopted rules that do not relate to procedure.
*Under ''TSC'' "special rules" as rules adopted just for one situation and do not have continuing existence.
References
{{reflist
*"Parliamentary Authorities' Rule Shift Function," ''Parliamentary Journal'', January 2005, pp. 3–11
Parliamentary procedure