REVISED RULES

OF THE

SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

ADOPTED APRIL 12, 1954. EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 1954.

PART I. THE COURT.

1.

CLERK.

1. The clerk of this court shall reside and keep the office at the seat of the National Government, and he shall not practice as attorney or counsellor in any court, while he continues in office.

2. The clerk shall not permit any original record or paper to be taken from the office, except temporarily for purposes of printing, and except, on proper application from counsel or from the clerk or the presiding judge of a court below whose judgment is sought to be reviewed, for return to such court, after the conclusion of the proceedings in this court. Original or file copies of pleadings, papers, or briefs may not be withdrawn by litigants.

3. The clerk's office will be open from 9:00 A. M. to 5:00 P. M. Mondays through Fridays, and from 9:00 A. M. to noon on Saturdays, legal holidays excepted.

2.

LIBRARY.

1. The library for the bar shall be open to members of the bar of this court, to members of Congress, and to law officers of the executive or other departments of the Government.

2. The library shall be open during such times as the reasonable needs of the bar require and shall be governed by the regulations made by the librarian with the approval of the chief justice.

3. Books may not be removed from the building.

3.

TERM.

1. The court will hold an annual term commencing on the first Monday in October of each year and may hold such adjourned or special terms as may be necessary.

2. The court will at every term announce the date after which no case will be called for argument, or be submitted for decision at that term, unless otherwise ordered for special cause shown.

3. At the end of each term, all cases on the docket shall be continued to the next term.

4.

SESSIONS, QUORUM, AND ADJOURNMENTS.

1. Open sessions of the court will be held at noon on the first Monday in October of each year, and thereafter as announced by the court. When the court is in session to hear arguments, it sits from noon until two; recesses until half-past two; and adjourns for the day at halfpast four.

2. The court will not hear arguments or hold open sessions on Saturday.

3. In the absence of a quorum, on any day appointed for holding a session of the court, the justices attending (or, if no justice is present, the clerk or a deputy clerk) may adjourn the court until there is a quorum.

4. The court may, in appropriate instances, direct the clerk or the marshal to announce recesses and adjournments.

PART II. ATTORNEYS AND COUNSELLORS.

5.

ADMISSION TO THE BAR.

1. It shall be requisite to the admission of attorneys or counsellors to practice in this court, that they shall have been such for three years past in the highest court of a State, Territory, District, Commonwealth, or Possession, and that their private and professional characters shall appear to be good.

2. In advance of appearing for admission, each applicant shall file with the clerk (1) a certificate from the presiding judge or clerk of the proper court evidencing his admission to practice there and that he is presently in good standing, and (2) his personal statement, on the form approved by the court and furnished by the clerk, which shall be indorsed by two members of the bar of this court who are not related to the applicant.

3. Admissions will be granted only upon oral motion by a member of the bar in open court, and upon his assurance that he is satisfied that the applicant possesses the necessary qualifications.

4. Upon being admitted, each applicant shall take and subscribe the following oath or affirmation, viz:

I, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will demean myself, as an attorney and counsellor of this court, uprightly, and according to law; and that I will support the Constitution of the United States.

See Rule 52 (f) for fee required.

6.

ADMISSION OF FOREIGN COUNSEL.

An attorney, barrister, or advocate who is qualified to practice in the courts of any foreign state may be specially admitted to the bar of this court for purposes limited

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to a particular case. He shall not, however, be authorized to act as attorney of record. In the case of such applicants, the oath shall not be required and there shall be no fee. Such admissions shall be only on motion of a member of the bar of this court, notice of which signed by such member and reciting all relevant facts shall be filed with the clerk at least three days prior to the motion.

7.

CLERKS TO JUSTICES NOT TO PRACTICE.

No one serving as a law clerk or secretary to a justice of this court shall practice as an attorney or counsellor in any court or before any agency of government while continuing in that position; nor shall he after separating from that position practice as an attorney or counsellor in this court until two years have elapsed after such separation; nor shall he ever participate, by way of any form of professional consultation and assistance, in any case that was pending in this court during the period that he held such position.

8.

DISBARMENT.

Where it is shown to the court that any member of its bar has been disbarred from practice in any State, Territory, District, Commonwealth, or Possession, or has been guilty of conduct unbecoming a member of the bar of this court, he will be forthwith suspended from practice before this court. He will thereupon be afforded the opportunity to show good cause, within forty days, why he should not be disbarred. Upon his response to the rule to show cause, or upon the expiration of the forty days if no response is made, the court will enter an appropriate order; but no order of disbarment will be entered except with the concurrence of a majority of the justices participating.

PART III. ORIGINAL JURISDICTION.

9.

PROCEDURE IN ORIGINAL ACTIONS.

1. This rule applies only to actions within the original jurisdiction of the court under the Constitution. Original applications for writs in aid of the court's appellate jurisdiction are governed by Part VII of these rules.

2. The form of pleadings and motions in original actions shall be governed, so far as may be, by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and in other respects those rules, where their application is appropriate, may be taken as a guide to procedure in original actions in this court.

3. The initial pleading in any original action shall be prefaced by a motion for leave to file such pleading, and both shall be printed in conformity with Rule 39. A brief in support of the motion for leave to file, which shall comply with Rule 39, may be filed with the motion and pleading. Sixty copies of each document, with proof of service as prescribed by Rule 33, are required, except that, where the adverse party is a State, service shall be made on the governor and attorney general of such State.

4. The case will be placed upon the original docket when the motion for leave to file is filed with the clerk. The docket fee must be paid at that time, and the appearance of counsel for the plaintiff entered.

5. The adverse party or parties may, within sixty days after receipt of the motion for leave to file and allied documents, file sixty printed copies of a brief or briefs in opposition to such motion, which shall conform to Rule 39. When such brief or briefs in opposition have been filed, or the time within which they may be filed has expired, the motion, pleading and briefs shall be distributed to the court by the clerk. The court may