G151 Juries Brief notes on Juries. 4.0 / 5 based on 2 ratings ? LawThe Criminal courts and lay peopleASAll boards Created by: FerkahhanCreated on: 17-05-10 08:18 What you need to know... Jury Qualifications Size of the Jury How the Jury is used in criminal cases How the Jury is is used in civil cases The advantages of trial by jury The disadvantages of trial by jury Alternatives to trial by jury 1 of 11 Jury Qualifications Basic Qualifications 18 - 70 years old On Electoral Roll Lived in UK for five years since 13th birthday Not disqualified Not mentally disordered Disqualified For life if sentenced to 5+ years in prison For 10 years if sentenced to less than 5 years in prison, on suspended sentence or on a community order and while on bail. Excusals Armed forces or Discretionary 2 of 11 Selection Central office selects from electoral register Summons is sent Must attend unless disqualified or excused May be vetted for criminal record with wider checks for cases of national security Challenges may be made for cause Individual Whole Jury 3 of 11 Criticisms of Selection Electoral register doesn't include all the population as it excludes the homeless No power to ensure multi-racial juries Some disqualified jurors may sit and those given certain sentences are still eligible Excusals were too many at one stage Now more difficult to get an excusal and this may lead to resentment Judges may exert too much influence on juries 4 of 11 Role of the Jury in criminal cases Decides facts Retires to private room at end of trial to decide guilt or innocence Initially unanimous (all 12 jurors) but may be majority verdict (at least 10 jurors) if unanimous is not possible 5 of 11 Role of the jury in civil cases Dual role - both deciding who is liable and the amount of damages Very rarely used Used in cases of: Defamation False Imprisonment Malicious Prosecution Fraud No longer used in Personal Injury cases Used in certain circumstances in Coroner's Courts 6 of 11 Advantages of trial by jury Public confidence - one of the fundamentals of a democratic society "The lamp that shows freedom lives" Jury equity - decide on fairness and not just the law (Kronlid (1996)) Open system of justice - justice is seen to be done Secrecy of the jury room - allows the jury to be free of outside pressure Impartiality - not connected to anyone in the case 7 of 11 Disadvantages of trial by jury Perverse decisions - can be protest against the law, but is it up to the jury? Secrecy of the jury room As it is unknown how they make the decisions and there may be questionable decisions which cannot be appealed e.g. Young, Connor and Rollock Racial Bias as there is no right to a multiracial jury Media coverage may influence jurors Lack of understanding - especially for fraud trials High acquittal rates 8 of 11 Special problems with using juries in Civil Cases Deciding the amount of damages Not giving reasoned decision If public figures are involved, there may be bias Cost of using a jury makes the case much more expensive 9 of 11 Alternatives to trial by jury Trial by a single judge Less public confidence in this Panel of Judges Expensive Judge plus lay assessors Could be useful for fraud cases if accountants are used as the lay assessors A 'mini jury' 10 of 11 Common Mistakes! Getting JURIES muddled up with JUDICIARY or MAGISTRATES Not answering the question On part (b) questions where you give both advantages AND disadvantages where only one may be required Lack of detail 11 of 11
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