Because a jury holds your fate in their hands, it is critical to get a fair and impartial one. Whether you win, what type of relief, and amount of damages are all decided by the jury. Therefore, when a jury is biased or otherwise improper, you are cheated out of your rights. Instead, to be effective, a trial must be both fair and just. Consequently, Lynch v. Carolina Self Storage Centers, Inc. explores jury misconduct and possible remedies.
Jury Misconduct at Trial
While Lynch was moving furniture out of a storage unit, she injured her heel on a door. Subsequently, Lynch sued the storage company. However, the jury found Lynch fifty percent at fault and reduced her award. Rather than accept the verdict, Lynch moved for a new trial claiming the jury ignored her noneconomic damages. In addition, the defense moved for judgment notwithstanding the verdict, but the court decided against both requests.
After the trial, the jury foreperson told Lynch’s attorney that the jury used improper information during deliberations. For example, one juror did not like Lynch’s lawyer and did want to award her anything. Furthermore, other jurors thought she did not need money if she could afford to live beside a doctor. Rather, they thought she already had plenty of money. So she did not need more and reduced her award. Consequently, Lynch moved for a new trial based on jury misconduct and submitted an affidavit about this new information.
Rather than investigate the jury misconduct, the Court of Appeals denied and found that the submitted affidavit inadmissible. Because it did not name the juror who acted improperly or state why the juror was biased, the Court dismissed the appeal. In addition, the affidavit failed to state whether the bias existed prior to trial. As a result, no new trial and justice denied.
So What To Do If Jury Misconduct
Because a jury trial must be fair, you have to watch for jury issues throughout your case. And if discovered, you must report it to the judge as soon as possible. Rather than second guess, always go the judge if you have any doubts. That way, the court can deal with any issues right away. After all, justice delayed is better than justice denied.