Cite as: 507 U. S. 380 (1993)
Opinion of the Court
ents contained a "dramatic ambiguity," which could well have confused "[e]ven persons experienced in bankruptcy." Ibid. Having determined that the fifth Dix factor favored respondents rather than petitioner, the Court of Appeals found that the record demonstrated "excusable neglect."
Because of the conflict in the Courts of Appeals over the meaning of "excusable neglect," 3 we granted certiorari, 504 U. S. 984 (1992), and now affirm.
II
A
There is, of course, a range of possible explanations for a party's failure to comply with a court-ordered filing deadline. At one end of the spectrum, a party may be prevented from complying by forces beyond its control, such as by an act of God or unforeseeable human intervention. At the other, a
3 The Courts of Appeals for the Fourth, Seventh, Eighth, and Eleventh Circuits have taken a narrow view of "excusable neglect" under Rule 9006(b)(1), requiring a showing that the delay was caused by circumstances beyond the movant's control. See In re Davis, 936 F. 2d 771, 774 (CA4 1991); In re Danielson, 981 F. 2d 296, 298 (CA7 1992); Hanson v. First Bank of South Dakota, N. A., 828 F. 2d 1310, 1314-1315 (CA8 1987); In re Analytical Systems, Inc., 933 F. 2d 939, 942 (CA11 1991). The Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, by contrast, has applied a more flexible analysis similar to that employed by the Court of Appeals in the present case. In re Centric Corp., 901 F. 2d 1514, 1517-1518, cert. denied sub nom. Trustees of Centennial State Carpenters Pension Trust Fund v. Centric Corp., 498 U. S. 852 (1990). The Courts of Appeals similarly have divided in their interpretations of "excusable neglect" as found in Rule 4(a)(5) of the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure. Some courts have required a showing that the movant's failure to meet the deadline was beyond its control, see, e. g., 650 Park Ave. Corp. v. McRae, 836 F. 2d 764, 767 (CA2 1988); Pratt v. McCarthy, 850 F. 2d 590, 592 (CA9 1988), while others have adopted a more flexible approach similar to that employed by the Court of Appeals in this case, see, e. g., Consolidated Freightways Corp. of Delaware v. Larson, 827 F. 2d 916 (CA3 1987), cert. denied sub nom. Consolidated Freightways Corp. v. Secretary of Transp. of Pennsylvania, 484 U. S. 1032 (1988); Lorenzen v. Employees Retirement Plan of Sperry-Hutchinson Co., 896 F. 2d 228, 232-233 (CA7 1990).
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