What are the Advantages of Juries?

Juries are a key part of the justice system that have been used in some form since the arrival of William the Conqueror in 1066. Indeed, a jury of twelve and a judge in the traditional wig is often the first image that comes to mind when picturing a trial. Juries are made up of members of the public within a certain age range, called up at random. They may be exempt due to certain characteristics, but most people are eligible to serve on a jury. In this week’s blog post, we will be focusing on juries and the many advantages they have for the judicial system. Of course, there are also some disadvantages of juries, which we will be looking at in a later blog post.

Randomly Selected

The first advantage we will consider is one that was mentioned above – juries are randomly selected. Provided a person is not exempt for any reason, anyone can serve on a jury, regardless of their background, race, religion, etc. – they just have to be on the electoral register. This should give a diverse range of jurors from all walks of life. The advantage of this is that they should each bring their own perspective to the case and make the trial fairer for the defendants. In theory, even if each juror does have a particular bias or prejudice, this should be cancelled out by other jury members, giving a fair verdict overall.

Open System of Justice

A further advantage of juries is that they help to create an open system of justice. Essentially, this means that there is transparency in the processes used by the courts that allow the general public to clearly see how they work. It should be easy to see what happens before a case comes to trial, how it is brought to court, the trial process and how the verdict is reached.  The jury is only a small part of this, but a very important one. They are twelve unknown peers of the defendant that will decide the outcome of this case, with some legal advice and direction. Using members of the public in trials helps to demystify the process.

Public Confidence

Another advantage of juries is that they help to build public confidence in the justice system. The general public can see that important decisions are being made by people just like them and this helps to make the process feel more grounded. Judges are legal professionals with years of experience and magistrates also receive a lot of training. Jurors only receive advice on how the law is interpreted and do not need to have any legal background or training. As they are randomly selected, everyone should be represented in some way on a typical jury. This helps to ensure people trust the legal system and believe that they would get a fair trial.

As well as boosting confidence in the justice system for outside observers, juries can also reassure those serving on them. People called up to be jurors will get to see the whole process, starting with them being informed that they have been randomly selected. They will then be able to watch how the trial works from the inside, seeing that both parties are given the chance to speak and present evidence. The jury will then go away to deliberate their verdict. In this time, every juror is entitled to put forward their own opinion and will each have their own vote. Although they receive legal advice, the final decision is up to them.

Jury Equity

The term jury equity refers to the freedom that juries have to come to a decision that they think is fair or just rather than the technically legally correct outcome. They can do this as they are not bound to follow precedents and do not have to explain the reasoning for their decisions. This means that, in extreme cases, the jury can put aside the law and instead choose an outcome that they feel is fair. This can help to avoid absurd or unjust outcomes.

Secrecy

All jury decisions are made in private, with only the final verdict being announced. Details of the reasoning or individual votes will not be made public, so jury members can make these decisions without needing to worry about how it will appear. This allows juries to come to a verdict without outside pressure, which should lead to a fairer outcome.

Impartiality

It is also worth noting that juries are supposed to be impartial. They are not allowed to serve on a jury if they know either party or have been following the case in the media. This should mean that the jury can view the case objectively and make decisions based purely on what they have heard in court.

Wrapping Up

There are many advantages of juries, so hopefully this blog post has helped you to get to grips with a few of them! However, there are also some disadvantages, which we will be looking at in my next blog post.

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