No ruling, judgment or decree of any court may be reversed, affirmed, sustained, modified or in any other manner affected by the Supreme Court or the Appellate Court unless a majority of the judges on the panel hearing the cause concur in the decision. No cause reserved, where no verdict has been rendered, judgment given or decree passed, shall be determined unless a majority of the judges on the panel hearing the cause concur in the decision. Whenever the Supreme Court is evenly divided as to the result, the court shall reconsider the case, with or without oral argument, with an odd number of judges. If the court reconsiders the case without oral argument, the judges who did not hear oral argument shall have available to them the electronic recording or transcript of the oral argument before participating in the decision. If a judge who is a member of a panel is not present for oral argument, the judge shall have available to him or her the electronic recording or transcript of the oral argument.
(1949 Rev., S. 7683; P.A. 82-248, S. 110; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 83-29, S. 68, 82; P.A. 10-43, S. 4.)
History: P.A. 82-248 substituted “may” for “shall”; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 83-29 added reference to appellate court, added “affirmed, sustained, modified or in any manner affected”, deleted language re equal division of judges and casting vote of the chief justice, and added language requiring a majority of judges to concur in decision and reargument before full panel when case argued before even number of judges and court is evenly divided as result; P.A. 10-43 provided that it is majority of judges on panel who must concur in decision, deleted provision requiring reargument before full panel when case is argued before even number of judges and court is evenly divided as to result, added provision requiring reconsideration, with or without oral argument, with odd number of judges when court evenly divided as to result, and added provisions re availability of electronic recording or transcript of oral argument.