California jury system benefits from new rules in 2007

By Julia Cheever, Bay City News Service

December 29, 2006

SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) - Jurors who serve in state trial courts in California in the New Year will benefit from several new rules, including a requirement that they be allowed to take notes.

The procedures were adopted by the state Judicial Council, the policymaking body of the California court system, at a meeting in San Francisco on Dec. 1. They will go into effect on Monday.

In a key measure, jurors will be permitted to take written notes in all civil and criminal trials in superior courts, the trial courts of the state court system.

Judicial Council spokeswoman Lynn Holton said judges previously had the authority to allow note taking, but there was no statewide requirement that judges must permit the practice.

Under the new rule, judges will be required to allow jurors to take notes and to inform jurors that they may do so. Courts will be required to provide suitable materials for note taking.

Several other new rules are in the form of recommendations or expanded authority for trial judges, including a recommendation that judges allow jurors to submit written questions directed to witnesses who are testifying.

Other changes include authorization for judges to allow lawyers to make brief opening statements about a case to the entire panel of prospective jurors before the actual jurors are chosen, and authorization for judges to give juries preliminary instructions at the start of a trial on the principles of law that will govern the proceedings.

Another change provides authorization for judges to help juries that appear to be at an impasse during deliberations by providing additional or clarifying jury instructions and/or allowing additional closing arguments by lawyers.

The new rules are part of a decade-long effort to improve the state jury system.

Previous reforms include the council's adoption of so-called "plain English" jury instructions for civil cases statewide in 2003 and for criminal cases in 2005.

In 2000, juror pay was increased for the first time since 1957, from $5 per day to $15 per day, starting with the second day of service.

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