§ 140. — Adjournment.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 28USC140]
TITLE 28--JUDICIARY AND JUDICIAL PROCEDURE
PART I--ORGANIZATION OF COURTS
CHAPTER 5--DISTRICT COURTS
Sec. 140. Adjournment
(a) Any district court may, by order made anywhere within its
district, adjourn or, with the consent of the judicial council of the
circuit, pretermit any regular session of court for insufficient
business or other good cause.
(b) If the judge of a district court is unable to attend and unable
to make an order of adjournment, the clerk may adjourn the court to the
next regular session or to any earlier day which he may determine.
(June 25, 1948, ch. 646, 62 Stat. 897; Pub. L. 88-139, Sec. 1, Oct. 16,
1963, 77 Stat. 248.)
Historical and Revision Notes
Based on title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed., Secs. 16, 146, 182 (Mar. 3,
1911, ch. 231, Secs. 12, 73, 101, 36 Stat. 1088, 1108, 1122; June 12,
1916, ch. 143, 39 Stat. 225; Feb. 20, 1917, ch. 102, 39 Stat. 927; June
13, 1918, ch. 98, 40 Stat. 604; Feb. 26, 1919, ch. 54, 40 Stat. 1184;
May 29, 1924, ch. 209, 43 Stat. 243; June 5, 1924, ch. 259, 43 Stat.
387; Jan. 10, 1925, chs. 68, 69, 43 Stat. 730, 731; Feb. 16, 1925, ch.
233, Sec. 1, 43 Stat. 945; May 7, 1926, ch. 255, 44 Stat. 408; Apr. 21,
1928, ch. 395, 45 Stat. 440; Mar. 2, 1929, ch. 539, 45 Stat. 1518; June
28, 1930, ch. 714, 46 Stat. 829; May 13, 1936, ch. 386, 49 Stat. 1271;
Aug. 12, 1937, ch. 595, 50 Stat. 625).
Section consolidates section 16 with the third sentence of section
146, and the final proviso in the third paragraph of section 182, all of
title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed.
Said section 16 of title 28 provided for adjournment by the marshal,
or clerk, on written order of the judge, in case of inability of the
district judge to attend at the commencement of any regular, adjourned
or special term, or any time during such term. Said sections 146 and 182
thereof, related to the district courts of Colorado and Oklahoma, only,
and contained special provisions for adjournment. Subsection (b) omits
the requirement of written order where the judge is unable to make such
order.
The revised section broadens these provisions, and vests
discretionary power in the court, by order made anywhere within the
district, to adjourn any term of court ``for insufficient business or
other good cause.'' To establish uniformity, the special provisions
relating to Colorado and Oklahoma were omitted.
Other provisions of said sections 146 and 182 of title 28, U.S.C.,
1940 ed., are incorporated in sections 85 and 116 of this title.
The provision of subsection (a) authorizing the district court, with
the consent of the judicial council of the circuit, to pretermit any
term of court for insufficient business or other good cause, is inserted
to obviate the expense and inconvenience of convening and adjourning a
term for which no need exists.
Amendments
1963--Subsecs. (a), (b). Pub. L. 88-139 substituted ``session'' for
``term''.
