legal-writing
If legal code numbers ever get revised
<p>Wondering if code numbers such as <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/31/5330" rel="nofollow noreferrer">31 U.S. Code § 5330</a> ever get revised.</p>

<p>So one day it is like this:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>Title 31 › Subtitle IV › Chapter 53 › Subchapter II › § 5330 › (a) › 1</p>
</blockquote>

<p>And the next day it becomes:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>Title 35 › Subtitle I › Chapter 10 › Subchapter II › § 5330 › (a) › 3</p>
</blockquote>

<p>That is, they either shift it around like that, or they adjust the local position like this:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>Title 31 › Subtitle IV › Chapter 53 › Subchapter II › § 5330 › (b) › 3</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Or if it can never change because there is no concept of "versions" of the code (I'm not sure).</p>

<p>The US Code can be reorganized. <a href="http://uscode.house.gov/detailed_guide.xhtml" rel="nofollow noreferrer">This page</a> gives details of the structure of the US Code. As an example or renumbering, current <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/42/5186" rel="nofollow noreferrer">42 USC 5186</a> was first created as section 416 of <a href="https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/STATUTE-88/pdf/STATUTE-88-Pg143-2.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Public Law 93-288</a>, and <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/42/5183" rel="nofollow noreferrer">42 USC 5183</a> was enacted as section 413. <a href="https://www.hsdl.org/?view&amp;did=806354" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Public Law 100-707</a> enacted various renumberings, so section 416 of the act was redesignated section 419, and section 413 was redesignated section 416. It is useful to know of the distinction between positive law titles and non-positive law titles. Some titles in the US Code are themselves federal statutes (positive law titles), and some are editorial compilations (non-positive law title). Title 10 (Armed Forces) was directly created by act of Congress, and Title 42 (The Public Health and Welfare) results from many specific acts. Non-positive law titles are prima facie evidence of the law, and positive law titles are legal evidence of the law – the difference rests in how authoritative one is vs. the other. Generally, it doesn't matter, unless there is an error in compiling a statute into the code (which has happened: <a href="https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/508/439/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">US Nat. Bank of Ore. v. Independent Ins. Agents of America</a>, 508 U.S. 439).</p>
