Are juries obsolete

Juries have been an integral part of the United Kingdom's court system for a very long time. The system works by recruiting twelve citizens to hear out the testimony of both the defendant and the crown in a case. The first juror chosen is called the foreman and he or she is in charge of leading the proceedings. The twelve jurors then decide on a verdict of either guilty or not guilty. While deciding on their verdict the jurors stay in a quiet room to deliberate and discuss the facts brought to them by both the defence and the prosecution. The jurors can only come to a verdict if all twelve of them agree. If all twelve do not agree then a "hung jury" is called and another group of twelve is selected to come to a verdict. Most cases in the United Kingdom are settled before they go to trial and some cases do not need a jury. An accused person has a right to trial by jury but can instead agree to a bench trial. In the English Legal system, only a small percentage of cases are tried by jury. They are used in the Crown Courts for criminal trials on indictment, High Court, Queen's Bench Division. The most important is the Crown Court where juries decide whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty. This means that the jury is used in about 20,000 cases each year. Basically, the jury is a panel of lay people, 12 in number, who listen to both sides of a case and arrive at a decision

  • Word count: 2337
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Law
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Juries - explaining how jurors are chosen.

Juries In this part of my essay I will be explaining how jurors are chosen. I will be going into depth about the qualifications needed and what disqualifies people. I will also be writing about how the jurors are selected for criminal trails in the Crown Court. The most important use of juries today is in the Crown Court where they decide whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty. The jury has to listen the evidence for both the prosecution and the defence and decide what are the true facts of the case - what they believe. The judge directs them as to what is the relevant law; the jury applies the facts to the law and reaches a verdict. Juries are chosen at random from the electoral register, which holds the name and addresses of all those registered to vote in elections. The procedure takes place at the Crown Court; an official is responsible for summonsing enough jurors to try the cases to be heard over the two-week period. People must sit if selected unless they have a valid excuse. The qualifications need are that the person must be aged between 18 and 17, registered as a parliamentary or local government elector, ordinarily resident in the UK channel islands or isle of man for at least 5 years since their 13th birthday. Some criminal convictions will disqualify a person from jury service. People who have a prison sentence of 5 years or more will lead to a

  • Word count: 1637
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Law
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Juries Essay

Juries Essay Juries have been used in our legal system for over 1000 years since the Magna Carta which recognised the right to trail by "the lawful judgment of his peers." Since 1215 juries became the usual method of trying criminal cases. The independence of the jury was recognized in Bushell's case (1670) when it was established that the judge could not challenge the decision made. Juries are used in both Criminal and Civil cases although the use of juries is very small. Juries are used in the Crown Court for criminal trials of indictment, High Court - Queen's Bench Division, County Court and in some cases the Coroners' Courts. Less than 1% of criminal cases are decided on by a jury this is because 97% of cases are dealt by the Magistrates' Court and from the cases that go to the Crown Court, about two out of three defendants plead guilty. Juries in criminal cases are used to decide the guilt or innocence of the defendant. Juries are used in civil cases to decide the liability and on the damages for the following cases; deformation, malicious prosecution, fraud and false imprisonment. In very exceptional cases a jury can be used in personal injury cases. In these cases a judge of character isn't necessary so there is no need for a trail. Person injury cases should normally be tried by a judge to assess compensation award on a fixed scale. The case on Ward v James (1966)

  • Word count: 986
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Law
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Explain how lay magistrates and juries are used in civil and criminal cases.

a) Explain how lay magistrates and juries are used in civil and criminal cases. Lay magistrates' main role is to deal with criminals, but they also exercise certain administrative functions. Lay magistrates hear over 1,000,000 cases a year, nearly 95% of all criminal trials. In the criminal division, lay magistrates (LM's) have 4 main functions. They deal with court procedures, such as preliminary hearings and committal proceedings. LM's also deal with bail and remand hearings. Lay magistrates also deal with trials, with offences in summary and either way cases. LM's also deal with appeals, from Magistrates Court to the Crown Court, with a mixed bench of LM's and Crown Court judges. In the civil division, lay magistrates can deal with cases such as non payment of taxes, licence applications, and family court cases. Lay magistrates are said to have local knowledge, and thought to be more aware of the area involve, and would have a better understanding of the case. Only a minority of cases are tried before a jury, only around 4-5% of cases. Of these, a high number will involve guilty pleas, usually 60-70%, which naturally does not involve the jury. The main function of the jury is to weigh up the evidence, and decide the verdict of the case. There may be cases where the judge directs a jury that the law demands that they acquit a defendant, thereby making there mind

  • Word count: 676
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Law
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Juries - an overview.

INTRODUCTION "The lamp that shows that freedom lives" 1 This phrase was used by Lord Devlin to describe juries. I personally feel that this phrase had concisely and precisely describe the jury system. This is because the jury system gives opportunity to the layman to participate in the administration of legal system, to ensure that justice is done. It cannot be deny that the 'lamp' is shinning a little dimmer today, as the role of juries in court is declining. However, juries are still important, for its presence define truth and justice. Beside, it had also been accepted since our ancestor's time that the jury of '12 good men and true'2 is the heartbeat of the British Legal System. OVERVIEW OF JURY SYSTEM A jury is a group of men and women who sit in court, listen to evidence and decide whether the court had establish beyond reasonable doubt for criminal cases or on the balance of probability for civil cases, that the defendant had commit the offence charged. Juries had been used in the English Legal System since a thousand years ago. The jury system was imported into Britain after the Norman Conquest. However, it must be recognise that the early function of jury is very different form what it is today. The very first jury had acted as witness and provides information to the court. Later, Henry II changed the function of jury to one who deliberates on evidence. Slowly,

  • Word count: 5724
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Law
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Juries in NSW

Juries in NSW Table of contents . Introduction 2. The role of the jury in NSW 3. The role of the jury in criminal and civil trials 4. Eligibility for jury service in NSW 5. Jury selection 6. The advantages and disadvantages of the jury system in NSW in 2005 7. Conclusion/recommendation 8. Bibliography The jury system plays a very important part in the running of the courts. The jury system is needed in both criminal and civil cases. There are advantages of the jury system as well as disadvantages. However, the jury system is still very important to the justice system. The role of the jury in NSW A jury is a group of people from the community with all sorts of backgrounds, beliefs, religions, education levels and ages, who listens to the evidence of the cases and helps the court to decide the outcome of the cases. Jury duty in NSW is a very important responsibility, providing a link between the justice system and the community. The role of the jury in criminal trials In criminal trials, the jury consists of 12 people and the jury's duty is to decide whether the person accused is guilty or not guilty of a crime. The jury listens to the judge's instructions, information given out by the prosecutor and most importantly, the evidence. Then the 12 jurors must agree on the same decision whether the accused is guilty or not. If they decide that the accused is innocent,

  • Word count: 875
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Law
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Arguments for and against juries.

Arguments for and against juries. By Kathryn Hughes December 2004 The right to a trial by jury is a tradition that goes right to the heart of the British legal system. It is a right fiercely fought for, and fiercely defended at those times when its powers have been seen to be under threat - as those backing reforms are finding. The tradition of being "tried by a jury of ones peers" probably has its origins in Anglo Saxon custom, which dictated that an accused man could be acquitted if enough people came forward to swear his innocence. Trial by jury was first enshrined in law in what has been seen as the world's first proclamation of human rights - the Magna Carter. The document, decreed in 1215 by King John after a rebellion by his barons, stated that a "freeman shall not be... imprisoned... unless by the judgement of his peers". The right to trial by jury was finally established absolutely in the legal system following the trial of William Penn in 1670. A jury of 12 randomly chosen citizens of London refused to convict the Quaker of "leading a dissident form of worship", despite being directed to by the judge and subjected to imprisonment and starvation in a bid to force their hand. The latest government proposals are seen by some as a direct attack on the traditions established in the Magna Carta and confirmed in the Penn trial. The government wants some defendants to

  • Word count: 886
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Law
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Juries in Civil & Criminal law

Explain how a jury is selected and describe its function in both civil and criminal law [15 marks] Persons asked to serve on a jury are selected by computer from the electoral roll, by the Central Summoning Bureau based in London. The potential jurors are summoned to a particular court by post. A notice regarding excusal, disqualification and ineligibility is attached to the summons. The electoral roll is a list of people that are entitled to vote. A juror must be aged between 18-70, even though if you are aged between 65-70 there is a right to refuse jury service. It is a duty to serve as a juror, if jurors do not attend they can be fined up to £1,000 and would be found guilty of a punishable offence and would be found guilty of contempt. Jurors must have lived in the country since they were 13 [or at least 5 years]. A jury is made up of 12 people, to ensure that there is a full jury in each court a larger number of people are called forming a 'pod'. Some people are exempt from jury service for various reasons, such as being ineligible i.e. those who are mentally ill, those with criminal records, police officers, M.P., mothers with small children. It is a civil service to serve on a jury and jurors are picked at random. Anybody in the Vanity of the court [tales de circumstantibus] can be asked to serve on the jury, if the jury is incomplete [due to excusal or challenge].

  • Word count: 1415
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Law
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Law : Juries & Judges

Law Coursework Jury Trial within the English Legal System. The Jury system throughout England is one, which manages to give the public the chance to play a vital part in the legal system. This gives you the chance to see what is going on throughout the law and informs you what happens in court. You, as a juror will usually be involved in the more serious criminal cases such as burgluary, theft and drug offences. It would be less likely that you would be sitting in a case about murder or rape. The trial which you would attend would be seen in the Crown Court. However, sometimes a juror would be needed in a civil case, which would be heard at either the High Court or County Court. Although a jury would be less likely to be in a civil case than a criminal case. The usual amount of people on a dury is 12, usually there will be a cross-section of the society in order to get a fair and unbiased trial. Your aim as a jury would be to consider the evidence and then reach a verdict of 'guilty' or 'not guilty.' In order to be able to become a juror you have to have some certain qualities, such as: * Between 18 and 70 years of age. * On the electoral register to vote. * Lived in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man for at least 5 years since the age of 13. All of these qualifications are set out by the Juries Act 1974. However, some people still, even with these qualities, appear

  • Word count: 2717
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Law
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'It is simply unrealistic to think that juries are capable of dealing with long and complex fraud trials.'

'It is simply unrealistic to think that juries are capable of dealing with long and complex fraud trials.' What is the function of Jury? Jury has been variously described as the safeguard of liberty; an essential check upon unpopular laws; the best means for establishing truth. Equally enthusiastically, opponents complain that the jury has never provided any protection against oppressive government; it sometimes shows a willful disregard for the law; it lacks practical expertise; and it introduces as much prejudice as good sense into its decisions. Currently in most criminal cases the charge is first considered by a grand jury with between 12 and 23 members. Pros and Cons about Jury The strengths or weaknesses of the jury system are very much a matter of perception. Forming an objective view upon the competence of laypersons to understand and apply legal principles appropriately is made more difficult by the existence of s8 Contempt of Court Act 1981 which prohibits any research into jury deliberations. On that basis there is no way of discovering precisely why jurors have reached the verdict they have in a specific case or whether they have understood the legal issues and applied the law as directed by the judge. The value of juries in civil trials is disputed in the UK. Opponents of juries argue that they are ineffective, irrational and cause delay;

  • Word count: 1346
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Law
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