Definition
The forced removal of a member from a body to which they belong—a corporation, legislature, professional association, club, or similar organization—by formal vote or authorized action of that body. Expulsion terminates the membership relationship entirely, as distinguished from suspension, which is temporary. The expelling body must typically have authority to act (through charter, bylaws, or constitutional provision), follow its own procedural rules, and have adequate cause.
The term appears across several distinct legal contexts:
1. Legislative expulsion: The removal of an elected member from a legislative chamber. In the United States, each house of Congress has constitutional authority to expel its own members by a two-thirds vote. State legislatures hold analogous authority under their respective constitutions.
2. Corporate and associational expulsion: The removal of a shareholder, officer, or member from a corporation, professional body, union, or private association. Governed primarily by the entity's bylaws and applicable corporate or nonprofit law. Subject to procedural due process requirements when the association exercises quasi-public functions.
3. School expulsion: The permanent or long-term removal of a student from a school or school district. Distinct from suspension. Triggers procedural protections under federal and state law, including due process requirements developed under Goss v. Lopez (1975) for public school students.
---
Common Language
Modern common usage (Wiktionary): The act of expelling or the state of being expelled.
Historical common usage (Webster's 1913): The act of expelling; a driving or forcing out; summary removal from membership, association, etc.
The common meaning is not wrong, but it understates what expulsion requires legally. In ordinary speech, "expulsion" suggests any forceful removal. In law, the term carries structural constraints: the expelling body must have jurisdiction to act, typically must follow established procedures, and the action must rest on recognized grounds. An expulsion that fails these requirements may be void or actionable—something the common definition does not suggest.
---
Common Confusion
EXPULSION vs. AMOTION: Rapalje & Lawrence and Anderson's Dictionary of Law both redirect "expulsion" to amotion. The two terms overlap but are not identical. Amotion historically referred specifically to the removal of an officer from office while leaving membership intact—a narrower concept. Expulsion removes membership entirely. In older sources, the distinction is not consistently maintained, and researchers will find the terms used interchangeably. When reading pre-20th century corporate law material, verify which form of removal is actually being described.
EXPULSION vs. SUSPENSION: Expulsion is permanent termination of membership; suspension is temporary exclusion. Both may require similar procedural steps, but their legal consequences differ significantly. Confusion between the two is common in organizational bylaws and in older legislative records.
EXPULSION vs. EXCLUSION: In the legislative context, exclusion is the refusal to seat a member-elect, typically requiring only a majority vote. Expulsion removes a seated member and requires a higher threshold (two-thirds in Congress). The two are frequently conflated in political commentary and in some older legal sources.
---
Recognized Forms
/SUBTYPES
Legislative expulsion: Constitutional authority, supermajority threshold, limited judicial review of internal proceedings.
Corporate/associational expulsion: Governed by charter and bylaws; may be reviewed by courts for compliance with internal rules and, in quasi-public bodies, for procedural fairness.
School expulsion: Statutory and regulatory framework; due process floor set by federal constitutional doctrine; zero-tolerance policies a modern development with its own body of administrative and judicial interpretation.
---
Why It Matters in Research
The most important navigational point: older dictionaries route this term directly to amotion, and researchers following that cross-reference will find much of the substantive doctrine there rather than under "expulsion." If you are researching corporate or organizational removal in 19th-century sources, amotion is the operative term.
Jurisdictional fragmentation is significant. School expulsion law is shaped by a combination of federal constitutional doctrine, state statutes, and local board policy—three layers that do not always align. Legislative expulsion doctrine is largely self-contained within each chamber's rules and precedents. Corporate expulsion is primarily a state law matter with substantial variation. A research thread that begins in one context will not transfer cleanly to another.
The due process dimension has expanded substantially over the 20th century. Historical dictionary definitions make no mention of constitutional constraints on expulsion. Modern research must account for procedural requirements that simply did not exist when these dictionaries were compiled. Black's definitions—accurate for their era—are materially incomplete for contemporary use.
In historical sources, watch for the use of "expulsion" as a near-synonym for eviction or physical removal from property. Anderson's cross-reference to eviction signals this overlap. Context is essential to determine whether a source is addressing membership termination or physical displacement.
---
Historical Dictionary Support
Black's Law Dictionary (both editions) defines expulsion as "a putting or driving out"—the act of depriving a member of a corporate body, legislative body, or similar organization of membership by legal vote, for breach of duty, improper conduct, or other sufficient cause. The definition is serviceable and captures the essential structure: a body acting on one of its own members, through its own process, for recognized cause.
Rapalje & Lawrence offers no independent definition, redirecting entirely to amotion—a telling editorial choice that reflects how the 19th-century legal mind categorized this concept. Anderson's does the same, adding cross-references to franchise and eviction that hint at the term's broader reach into property and political rights contexts.
What the historical dictionaries share is an absence of constitutional analysis. The procedural due process framework now central to school and public employment expulsion cases is entirely absent. So is any treatment of judicial review of legislative expulsion decisions. The historical definitions describe the act; they do not address when the act is legally valid or what remedies exist when it is not.
---
Jurisdictional Note
School expulsion law varies considerably by state in its procedural requirements, grounds, and duration limits, within the federal constitutional floor. Legislative expulsion thresholds and procedures are chamber-specific and constitutionally grounded in each jurisdiction's organic law. Corporate and associational expulsion is almost entirely a matter of state law, with significant variation in how courts treat procedural irregularities and what deference is owed to an organization's own determination of cause.
---
Encyclopedia Cross-Reference
See Law Mind Encyclopedia → Legislative Discipline (for constitutional authority and precedent governing removal of legislators)
See Law Mind Encyclopedia → Corporate Membership (for amotion, expulsion, and removal doctrine in organizational law)
See Law Mind Encyclopedia → Student Discipline (for school expulsion, due process requirements, and federal statutory framework)
---