Meaning & use
sundown clause
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Meanings
nouncountablelegallaw
A legal provision that stops having effect on a fixed date unless it is renewed.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a sundown clause' or 'several sundown clauses'.
Patterns
- a sundown clause in something
- include a sundown clause
- the sundown clause expires
The new privacy rules contain a sundown clause, so lawmakers must vote on them again in five years.
Insurers added a sundown clause to the policy, meaning cover for flood damage ends next December.
Without a sundown clause, the emergency powers could stay in force forever.
nouncountablelegallaw
A rule in a contract or treaty that ends the whole agreement automatically after a set period.
Grammar: Countable and often used with 'with' or 'without': 'with a sundown clause'.
Patterns
- with a sundown clause
- without a sundown clause
- a treaty with a sundown clause
The trade treaty was signed with a sundown clause so neither side felt trapped.
Negotiators argued for years about whether the arms deal should have a sundown clause.
A lease without a sundown clause can roll on indefinitely unless someone gives notice.
Word forms
| plural | sundown clauses |
|---|
Common combinations
- include a sundown clause
- The drafters decided to include a sundown clause so the tax break could not last forever.
- a sundown clause expires
- Their sundown clause expires in 2030, which is why the committee is reviewing it now.
- add a sundown clause to something
- MPs voted to add a sundown clause to the surveillance bill.
- a treaty with a sundown clause
- It is a treaty with a sundown clause, so both governments must renew it every decade.
- extend a sundown clause
- Business groups asked the minister to extend the sundown clause by another three years.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sunset clause
- This is the far more common term in American and British legal writing; 'sundown clause' is a less usual variant of the same idea.
- expiry date
- Everyday and general; it names the date something ends but does not suggest a formal legal provision.
- time limit
- Broader and plainer; it can refer to any deadline, not only a clause written into a law or contract.
Word family
- sundown noun
- The time in the evening when the sun goes below the horizon.
- sunset provision noun
- Another name for the same kind of self-ending legal rule.
Commonly confused: sundown clause or sunset clause? sundown clause or sunset law?
sundown clause vs sunset clause
The standard term for this legal device; 'sundown clause' is a rarer variant, so learners should recognize 'sunset clause' first and treat 'sundown clause' as the same thing.
sundown clause vs sunset law
A related but wider idea: a law that requires a whole agency or program to be reviewed and renewed, not just one clause ending on a date.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'sundown clause' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Sundown clause' is a countable legal noun for a provision that ends on a set date, so option 2 fits. Option 1 treats it as a time of day, option 3 as a piece of personal writing, and option 4 invents a verb that does not exist.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sundown clause”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.