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Laws of Duplicate Bridge 13


By Ross P - Posted on 16 September 2017

Law 58
Simultaneous Leads or Plays
A. Simultaneous Plays by Two Players
A lead or play made simultaneously with another player’s legal lead or play is deemed to be subsequent to it.
B. Simultaneous Cards from One Hand
If a player leads or plays two or more cards simultaneously:
1. If the face of only one card is visible, that card is played; all other cards are picked up and there is no further rectification (see Law 47F).
2. If the face of more than one card is visible, the offending player designates the card he/she intends to play; when he/she is a defender, each other card exposed becomes a penalty card (see Law 50).
3. After an offending player withdraws a visible card, an opponent who subsequently played to that trick may withdraw the card and substitute another card without further rectification (but see Law 16C).
4. If the simultaneous play remains undiscovered until both sides have played to the next trick, Law 67 applies.
Law 59
Inability to Lead or Play as Required
A player may play any otherwise legal card if he/she is unable to lead or play as required to comply with a rectification, whether because he/she holds no card of the required suit, or has only cards of the suit he/she is prohibited to lead, or because he/she is obliged to follow suit.
Law 60
Play After an Illegal Play
A. Play of Card After Irregularity
1. A play by a member of the non-offending side after his/her RHO has led or played out of turn or prematurely, and before rectification has been assessed, forfeits the right to rectification of that offence.
2. Once the right to rectification has been forfeited, the illegal play is treated as though it were in turn (except when Law 53B applies).
3. If the offending side has a previous obligation to play a penalty card, or to comply with a lead or play restriction, the obligation remains at future turns.
B. Defender Plays Before Required Lead By Declarer
When a defender plays a card after declarer has been required to retract a lead out of turn from either hand, but before declarer has led from the correct hand, the defender’s card becomes a major penalty card (Law 50).
C. Play By Offending Side Before Assessment of Rectification
A play by a member of the offending side before rectification has been assessed does not affect the rights of the opponents, and may itself be subject to rectification.
Law 61
Failure to Follow Suit – Inquiries Concerning a Revoke
A. Definition of Revoke
Failure to follow suit in accordance with Law 44 or failure to lead or play, when able, a card or suit required by law or specified by an opponent when exercising an option in rectification of an irregularity , constitutes a revoke. (When unable to comply see Law 59).
B. Right to Inquire About a Possible Revoke
1. Declarer may ask a defender who has faile dto follow suit whether he/she has a card of the suit led.
2. a). Dummy may ask declarer (but see Law 43B2b)).
b). Dummy may not ask a defender and Law 16B may apply.
3. Defenders may ask declarer and one another (at the risk of creating unauthorised information).
C. Right to Inspect Tricks
A claim of a revoke does not automatically warrant inspection of quitted tricks (see Law 66 C).
Law 62
Correction of a Revoke
A. Revoke Must Be Corrected
A player must correct a revoke if attention is drawn to the irregularity before it becomes established.
B. Correcting a Revoke
To correct a revoke the offender withdraws the played card and substitutes a legal card.
1. A card so withdrawn becomes a major penalty card (Law 50) if it was played from a defender’s unfaced hand.
2. The card may be replaced without further rectification if it was played from declarer’s (subject to Law 43B2b)) or dummy’s hand, or if it was a defender’s faced card.
C. Subsequent Cards Played
1. Each member of the non-offending side may withdraw and return to his/her hand any card played after the revoke but before attention was drawn to it (see Law 16C).
2. After a non-offender so withdraws a card, the player of the offending side next in rotation may withdraw his/her played card, which becomes a penalty card if the player is a defender (see Law 16C).
3. If both sides revoke on the same trick and only one side has played to the subsequent trick, then both revokes must be corrected (see Law 16C2). Every card withdrawn by the defending side becomes a penalty card.
D. Revoke on Trick Twelve
1. On the twelfth trick, a revoke, even if established, must be corrected if discovereed before all 4 hands have been returned to the board.
2. If a player revokes on the twelfth trick before his/her partners turn to play to the trick, Law 16C applies.
Law 63
Establishment of a Revoke
A. Revoke Becomes Established
A revoke becomes established:
1. When the offender or his/her partner leads or plays to the following trick (any such play, legal or illegal, establishes the revoke).
2. When the offender or his/her partner names or otherwise designates a card to be played to the following trick.
3. When a member of the offending side makes a claim or concession of tricks orally or by facing his/her hand or in any other way.
4. When agreement is established (as per Law 69A) to an opponent’s claim or concession; the offending side having raised no objection to it before the end of the round, or before making a call on a subsequent board.
B. Revoke May Not Be Corrected
Once a revoke is established, it may no longer be corrected (except as provided in Law 62D for a revoke on the twelfth trick or as in Law 62C3), and the trick on which the revoke occurred stands as played.