en banc

adverb or adjective

äⁿ-ˈbäⁿk 

: in full court : with full judiciary authority

Examples of en banc in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The 2nd Circuit said Wednesday that five judges voted against a rehearing before all the judges while three judges voted in favor of the en banc. —ABC News, 29 Apr. 2026

The state could petition the Third Circuit for a rehearing en banc, where other Third Circuit judges review the matter. —Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 8 Apr. 2026

District Attorney Thien Ho and Sheriff Jim Cooper held a news conference Thursday to urge residents to turn out to an en banc hearing next Wednesday, where a larger swath of the parole board will review the board’s initial decision in Vogelsang’s case. —Kate Wolffe, Sacbee.com, 12 Mar. 2026

But the decision was vacated in October as the court agreed to an en banc review, meaning with all of its judges. —Brieanna J. Frank, USA Today, 23 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

French, on the bench

First Known Use

1854, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for en banc

• gangplank
• nonbank
• outflank
• sandbank
• antitank
• interbank
• riverbank
• bank
• blank
• clank
• crank
• dank

Legal Definition

en banc

adverb or adjective

variants also in banc also in bank

in-ˈbaŋk, äⁿ-ˈbäⁿk

: with all judges or a quorum of judges present : in full court

an en banc rehearing

heard very few matters en banc

—H. B. Zobel

Etymology

Anglo-French en banke, literally, on the bench