Adjournment sine die

Adjournment sine die (Latin for 'without a date') is the conclusion of a meeting by a deliberative assembly, such as a legislature or organizational board, without setting a date to reconvene.[1] The assembly can reconvene, either in its present form or a reconstituted form, if preexisting laws and rules provide for this; otherwise, the adjournment effectively dissolves the assembly.[2]

A court may also adjourn a matter sine die, which means that the matter is stayed until further notice. In a sine die adjournment of this type, the hearing stands open indefinitely, and could theoretically be resumed if the situation changed.[3]

United States usage

The Congress of the United States customarily adjourns a session sine die on the morning of January 3, immediately before the next session holds its constitutionally mandated first meeting. It can also adjourn sine die at other times through a concurrent resolution that allows the Speaker of the House and Senate Majority Leader to resume the session.[4]

State legislatures follow suit and mark adjournment sine die with a ceremony, such as the Connecticut General Assembly wherein, on the final day of the legislative session, the House and Senate meet in a joint convention, and the Secretary of the State recites "Oyez, Oyez, Oyez", pounds the gavel, and declares the legislature adjourned sine die.[5][6]

In the Florida Legislature, the sergeants-at-arms of the Florida Senate and the Florida House of Representatives step outside their chambers each holding a handkerchief. When they meet in between the chambers, they both drop the handkerchiefs, signifying the end of the legislative session.[7][8]

Hong Kong usage

On 28 June 1997, Andrew Wong, President of the last Legislative Council of Hong Kong as a British crown colony, which was to be dissolved by the incoming sovereign power over Hong Kong, the People's Republic of China, and replaced by a provisional legislature, declared at the end of its last session: "In accordance with the Standing Orders of the Legislative Council, I now adjourn the Council, sine die."[9]

References

  1. ^ Sine die Webster's New World College Dictionary, Retrieved July 18th, 2009
  2. ^ Robert, Henry M.; et al. (2011). Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised (11th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Da Capo Press. p. 83. ISBN 978-0-306-82020-5.
  3. ^ Glossary - Latin Terms: Sine Die Archived 2010-06-29 at the Wayback Machine Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service, Retrieved May 16, 2011
  4. ^ "Adjournment sine die", US Senate Glossary, Retrieved July 18, 2009
  5. ^ "Session Scheduling Rules". Connecticut General Assembly.
  6. ^ Lohman, Judith (April 20, 2004). "Sine Die Adjournment Ceremonies". Connecticut General Assembly Office of Legislative Research.
  7. ^ Dughi, Don (1979). "Sine Die Handkerchief Ceremony-Florida State Capitol". Florida State Library and Archives.
  8. ^ "Tallahassee not only capitol with 'sine die' traditions". Florida Politics. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
  9. ^ "OFFICIAL RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS | LegCo Sitting 1996/97 Session" (PDF). LegCo Sitting 1996/97 Session. June 27, 1997. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 18, 2025. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
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