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Title 10 — Armed ForcesRelease 119-73

§8892 Stay of suit

Title 10 › Subtitle Subtitle C— - Navy and Marine Corps › Part PART IV— - GENERAL ADMINISTRATION › Chapter CHAPTER 885— - STAY OF JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS › § 8892

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

When the Secretary of the Navy tells a court or a judge handling a lawsuit covered by section 8891 that continuing the case could endanger or interfere with naval operations during a war, the court must stop all further steps in that lawsuit. Stopping the case does not stop the court from issuing orders to collect or protect evidence for the trial. It also does not stop finishing any such orders that were issued before the case was stopped.

Full Legal Text

Title 10, §8892

Armed Forces — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Whenever in time of war the Secretary of the Navy certifies to a court, or to a judge of a court, in which a suit described in section 8891 of this title is pending, that the prosecution of the suit would tend to endanger the security of naval operations in the war, or would tend to interfere with those operations, all further proceedings in the suit shall be stayed.
(b)A stay under this section does not suspend the issue of process to take or preserve evidence to be used in the trial or prevent the completion of action under similar process issued before the stay.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Historical and Revision Notes

Revised sectionSource (U.S. Code)Source (Statutes at Large) 7722(a)46 U.S.C. 791 (1st sentence, less applicability to duration of stay).
July 3, 1944, ch. 399, § 1 (1st sentence, less applicability to duration of stay), 58 Stat. 723. 7722(b)46 U.S.C. 791 (less 1st and 2d sentences and less proviso).
July 3, 1944, ch. 399, § 1 (less 1st and 2d sentences and less proviso), 58 Stat. 723. In subsection (a) the word “forthwith” is omitted as surplusage. In subsection (b) the words “of proceedings in pending suits as provided” are omitted as surplusage. The words “does not suspend” are substituted for the words “shall not operate to suspend”. The words “of the issues” and “the authority of” are omitted as surplusage. The words “issued before the stay” are substituted for the words “already issued at the time of such stay of suit”.

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2018—Pub. L. 115–232, § 807(d)(10), renumbered section 7722 of this title as this section. Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 115–232, § 809(a), substituted “section 8891” for “section 7721”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 2018 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 115–232 effective Feb. 1, 2019, with provision for the coordination of

Amendments

and special rule for certain redesignations, see section 800 of Pub. L. 115–232, set out as a note preceding section 3001 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

10 U.S.C. § 8892

Title 10 — Armed Forces

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73