sua sponte


Sua Sponte

[Latin, Of his or her or its own will; voluntarily.]

For example, when a court takes action on its own motion, rather than at the request of one of the parties, it is acting sua sponte.

sua sponte

(sooh-uh-spahn-tay) adj. Latin for "of one's own will," meaning on one's own volition, usually referring to a judge's order made without a request by any party to the case. These include an order transferring a case to another judge due to a conflict of interest or the judge's determination that his/her court does not have jurisdiction over the case.

sua sponte

‘of its own accord’, where the court does something without a motion from any of the parties. See EX PROPRIA MOTU.