A jury trial is where a jury scrutinizes the fact or the truth taking into consideration the evidence delivered by the conflicting parties in a tryout (University of Chicago, 1990). The major responsibility of a jury is to listen to a conflict, assess it and reach a conclusion using facts. He determines the party that is guilty after which the judge ascertain the consequence and fines.
The first advantage of the use of the jury in a trial is that it is equitable as compared to the bench trails. The primary reason behind this is the fact that a jury reaches a conclusion of a conflict using his critical thinking and reasoning on fairness and justice instead to using strict set laws. Taking into consideration Mann’s case, jury argument could have been that smith was not supposed to use Mann’s money since he squandered it and took advantage of his position (University of Chicago, 1990). Last but not least is that use of jury supports public participation and educate the society in the legal dispute resolution process.
One of the disadvantages of the use of Jury trials is that it is time-consuming when compared to the bench trials. For instance, the Mann’s case on the will took about five years. Additionally, jury trials tend to be legally unfair as compared to bench trials. The primary reason behind is the fact that juries often reach a conclusion different from the land laws. Taking into consideration the Mann Jury conclusion, it is evident that he ignored the competency fact and established unnecessary control without any facts. Next is that ordinary juries reach their conclusion without right evidence (University of Chicago, 1990). In Mann’s case, it is clear that the jury reached a conclusion that Mann was unskilled since she was not able to carry out her basic daily chores. The jury ignored the fact Mann was mentally sober when she signed the will. Last but not least are vulnerable to biasedness and a large extent, one party may be favored over another. The jury often reaches a conclusion based on their notions instead of the set will (University of Chicago, 1990). For example, Mann’s Jury reached into conclusion that Smith took advantage of his position as a conservator to squander Mann’s wealth.
Conclusively, as discussed above, it is evident that the use of jury trial has some advantages and disadvantages taking into consideration the nature of a case.
- University of Chicago. (1990). The role of the jury in civil dispute resolution. Chicago, Ill: Students at the University of Chicago Law School. Retrieved from: http://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1079&context=uclf
