It followed the last formal act of Preston's Guild celebrations which was the adjournment of the Guild Court until 2032.

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Federico Lombardi said no formal or symbolic act was needed to make his resignation official at that time, because Benedict has already done all that was required to resign by affirming publicly he had taken the decision freely.

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The act gave formal guidance for the first time on human tissue retention and the process of notifying families involved.

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And it's striking that the most media-observed figure in human history, the Princess of Wales, chose for her most daring and decisive media act a long, formal interview with Panorama, which 20 million people watched.

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The act of brokering can be formal and compensated with paid commissions or informal and somewhat ephemeral.

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Now, the community of women in leadership roles at Get Satisfaction act as a source of formal and informal mentorship.

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Perhaps, as Mr Chirac says, that veto could be circumvented by countries breezily deciding to act outside the Union's formal framework.

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When he tried to force the deputy speaker's nomination to a formal vote Mr Allister could not persuade another MLA to act as a teller.

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But the term sanctuary doesn't apply in those cities where there's been no formal declaration but police, on their own initiative, simply refuse to act as surrogate immigration officers.

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It was released on video in 1981, at a time when videos did not have to receive a formal classification, and remained on shelves until the introduction of the Video Recordings Act 1984.

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