This document contains the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure as well as Forms, as amended to December 1, 2011. The rules have been promulgated and amended by the United States Supreme Court pursuant to law, and further amended by Acts of Congress. This document has been prepared by the Committee in response to the need for an official up-to-date document containing the latest amendments to the rules. For the convenience of the user, where a rule has been amended a reference to the date the amendment was promulgated and the date the amendment became effective follows the text of the rule. The Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure and the Advisory Committee on the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, Judicial Conference of the United States, prepared notes explaining the purpose and intent of the amendments to the rules. The Committee Notes may be found in the Appendix to Title 18, United States Code, following the particular rule to which they relate.