Legal Definitions - juror

A juror is an individual selected from the general public to serve on a jury during a legal trial. Their fundamental role is to listen attentively to all the evidence presented by both sides, follow the judge's instructions regarding the applicable law, and then deliberate with other jurors to reach a fair and impartial verdict. Jurors are chosen through a process called jury selection, where potential candidates are screened to ensure they are unbiased and meet specific legal qualifications for service, such as being a citizen, being of a certain age, and not having a felony conviction.

Here are a few examples illustrating the role of a juror:

• Criminal Trial for Theft: Imagine a person named Sarah receives a summons for jury duty and, after the selection process, is chosen to serve on a jury for a criminal trial where the defendant is accused of grand theft. As a juror, Sarah spends several days in court, listening to witness testimonies, examining evidence like security footage, and ultimately participates in discussions with the other eleven jurors to decide if the prosecution has proven the defendant's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

  This example demonstrates a juror's role in a criminal case, where they are responsible for evaluating evidence and determining guilt or innocence.

• Civil Lawsuit for Personal Injury: Consider Mark, a retired accountant, who is selected to be a juror in a civil lawsuit. This case involves a pedestrian suing a driver for injuries sustained in a car accident. Mark's duty, along with the other jurors, is to assess the evidence presented by both the plaintiff's and defendant's attorneys, determine who was at fault, and if so, decide on the appropriate amount of compensation for damages.

  Here, Mark acts as a juror in a civil context, focusing on liability and damages rather than criminal guilt.

• Jury Selection for a Complex Business Dispute: During the jury selection phase for a high-stakes breach of contract case between two large corporations, a software engineer named Emily is questioned by the attorneys about her understanding of business agreements and her ability to remain neutral. After this questioning, she is chosen to be one of the seven individuals who will form the jury. For the duration of the trial, Emily will serve as a juror, tasked with understanding complex financial documents and expert testimony to help resolve the dispute.

  This scenario highlights how an individual becomes a juror through the selection process and then serves in a specialized civil case, requiring careful consideration of intricate details.