Also known as: divides the house · dividing the house · divided the house · division of the house · division · call a division
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A motion or order directing that votes cast at a meeting be counted individually rather than taken by voice or show of hands.
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At a bar association meeting, members debated whether to approve a proposed fee split under Rule 1.5(e)(1). When the voice vote proved inconclusive, a member moved to divide the house. The chair ordered a counted vote, revealing that exactly half the lawyers present supported the arrangement only if each assumed joint responsibility.
During a torts seminar discussion of independent harms under section 881, attendees could not agree on the proper division of liability. A participant called to divide the house. The resulting count showed a clear majority believed each defendant should bear only the portion of harm each had caused.
At a civil procedure workshop, participants argued over the proper district and division for filing a notice of removal under section 1446(a). The voice vote was unclear, so the moderator directed the group to divide the house. The count confirmed that most believed the notice must be filed in the district and division where the state action was pending.
Probate students debated whether a decedent's note satisfied the writing requirement for treating a lifetime gift as an advancement under section 2-109(a)(ii). After an ambiguous show of hands, the professor ordered the class to divide the house. The tally established that a majority viewed the contemporaneous writing as sufficient to adjust the intestate distribution.
In a corporations class, students considered a shareholder agreement that governed division of voting power under section 7.32(a)(4). The initial voice vote was inconclusive, prompting a call to divide the house. The counted result showed most students believed weighted voting rights were permitted by the statute.
At a trusts and estates meeting, attendees discussed whether a governing instrument could preserve a disposition to a former spouse under section 2-804(b). When the voice vote failed to resolve the issue, a student moved to divide the house. The count revealed that most believed an express contract relating to marital property division could override the statutory revocation.
It is a parliamentary procedure that requires votes to be counted individually instead of taken by voice or show of hands.
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It is appropriate when a voice or show-of-hands vote is inconclusive or when any member doubts the result and requests an exact count.
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Any member present may move to divide the house, after which the presiding officer orders the count.
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It is also termed divide the assembly, challenge the vote, or doubt the vote.
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…from its Board of Trustees, a reference committee noted "polarization of the medical profession on this controversial issue"; division among those who had testified; a difference of opinion among AMA councils and committees; "the remarkable shift in testimony" in six months, felt to be influenced "by the rapid changes in…