Legal Definitions - order of the day

The term order of the day refers to the specific item of business, topic, or agenda point that is formally scheduled for consideration, discussion, or action at a particular time during a legislative session, court proceeding, or other formal meeting.

Here are some examples to illustrate this concept:

• Legislative Session: Imagine a national parliament that has a packed schedule. For Tuesday morning's session, the speaker announces that "the order of the day is the second reading and debate of the proposed Healthcare Reform Act." This means that for that specific time slot, the primary business the legislators are expected to address is the discussion and potential amendment of that particular healthcare bill, and no other major topic will be taken up until that item is concluded or postponed.

• Court Hearing: In a civil court, a judge might begin a session by stating, "The order of the day is the hearing on the defendant's motion for summary judgment in the case of Smith v. Jones." This clearly indicates that the court's immediate focus and the specific legal matter to be argued and decided upon during that scheduled time is the motion to dismiss the case without a full trial, rather than any other pending cases or procedural matters.

• Corporate Board Meeting: During a quarterly meeting of a company's board of directors, the chairperson might declare, "Our first order of the day, following the approval of the minutes, is the presentation and vote on the Q3 financial performance report." This signals to all board members that the immediate and designated business for that segment of the meeting is to review and make decisions regarding the company's financial results for the third quarter, before moving on to other agenda items like strategic planning or new product development.