last minute

[ min-it ]

/ ˈmɪn ɪt /

the time just preceding a deadline or when some decisive action must be taken.

Origin of last minute

First recorded in 1915–20

last-min·ute, adjective

But fans still feel the death was a last-minute decision made for shock value rather than to serve the story.

‘The Walking Dead’ Fans Demand: Bring Back Beth! |Melissa Leon |December 11, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
It worked, but it was not a last-minute strategy, he insists.

Connecticut Governor Dan Malloy to Democrats: Grow a Pair |David Freedlander |November 19, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
A cell phone can now tell you which hotels nearby have last-minute vacancies, and deliver user reviews.

Obama’s Extravagant Summer Break? More Like, America’s Vacation-Deficit Disorder |Clive Irving |August 10, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
But he cautioned that last-minute snags could still derail an agreement.

Turkey Turns Back Toward Israel |Thomas Seibert |May 13, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

Rich defendant, revolving door attorneys, last-minute plea deals… cue the brooding theme music and time-lapse photography.

Delaware’s Affluenza Case Affects Justice, Too |Jay Michaelson |April 1, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
If not claimed then, it would be filled from the last-minute waiting list.

Legacy |James H Schmitz
By the time we landed, the Captain was through and I was running over the main points in my head, for a last-minute check.

The Man Who Played to Lose |Laurence Mark Janifer
The super-ships lay cold and gray now, men swarming in and out with last-minute supplies.

The Ultimate Weapon |John Wood Campbell
Allis noted with minute observance each little act in this pantomime of the last-minute plunge.

Thoroughbreds |W. A. Fraser
Last-minute recalculations showed that the extra lightness of the new loaf might be great enough to cause drift during stackage.

Bread Overhead |Fritz Reuter Leiber

last-minute

(modifier) given or done at the latest possible time last-minute preparations