NCJ Number
133248
Journal
American University Law Review Volume: 40 Issue: 2 Dated: (Winter 1991) Pages: 727-774
Date Published
1991
Length
48 pages
Annotation
The literature on jury competence is reviewed in an effort to provide information about the civil jury's functioning which may be used to evaluate the claims of proponents and opponents of lay participation in a wide range of complex legal proceedings.
Abstract
The five sections of this paper consider the role of the civil jury in expressing the values of the community in adjudication, doubts about the competence of lay persons to consider difficult issues, the research on juror competence in ordinary trials and in complex civil proceedings, and techniques to improve the performance of jurors faced with complex decisionmaking tasks. The data indicate that judges and jurors both, in general, view the jury's ability in complex cases in a positive light. The case studies reveal some variability in the competency of individual jurors, but also demonstrate that more knowledgeable jurors guide others in deliberations. 328 footnotes