Young Lawyer's Corner: Advice on Jury Instructions and Verdict Forms
Excerpt:
You have been asked to prepare a set of jury instructions and a verdict form for trial . . . for the first time. What do you do? Where do you start? And what does this have to do with appellate practice? Here, we offer some basic guidelines for drafting jury instructions and a verdict form, preparing for the charge conference, and preserving any error that may occur during or after the charge conference. The importance of having clear jury instructions, objections, and rulings thereon cannot be underestimated, as jury instructions are usually a fertile ground for appeal. Jury instructions are often reviewed de novo, because they involve questions of law, so it is imperative that you preserve all potential issues related to the instructions and verdict form.
Read: “Young Lawyer's Corner: Advice on Jury Instructions and Verdict Forms”
The information on this website is presented as a service for our clients and Internet users and is not intended to be legal advice, nor should you consider it as such. Although we welcome your inquiries, please keep in mind that merely contacting us will not establish an attorney-client relationship between us. Consequently, you should not convey any confidential information to us until a formal attorney-client relationship has been established. Please remember that electronic correspondence on the internet is not secure and that you should not include sensitive or confidential information in messages. With that in mind, we look forward to hearing from you.