During a personal injury trial, evidence gets presented to the jury. The jurists must decide whether or not a preponderance of the evidence supports the plaintiff’s allegations. Each personal injury trial proceeds through 6 phases.
Phase number 1: Selection of the jurors
The lawyers for both sides question the potential jurors. Any one of those men and women that must answer the lawyers’ questions could be excluded from consideration. There are 2 types of challenges that lawyers use, in order to trigger such exclusion.
One of those two is the peremptory challenge. A personal injury lawyer in Richmond Hill for the plaintiff or the defendant has the right to use a peremptory challenge, when acting to exclude a potential juror for any reason.
The other challenge is the one that either attorney could present “for cause.” The cause to which the attorney would be referring could be the potential juror’s apparent inability to be objective.
Phase number 2: Opening statement
Both of the lawyers give a statement, with the plaintiff’s attorney going first. That attorney’s words should explain what he or she plans to demonstrate, by using the evidence and the offered testimony.
The personal injury lawyer in Richmond Hill for the defendant has a different message. He or she prepares the jury for the rebuttal to the argument that has been given by the plaintiff’s legal representative.
Phase number 3: Witnesses testify and undergo cross-examination
This is where the jurists hear from both the witnesses and selected experts. Once one of the opposing lawyers has challenged a witness or expert with carefully chosen questions, the other attorney conducts a cross-examination. During any one period of testimony, specific pieces of evidence get displayed for the 12-person jury.
Phase number 4: Closing statements
During these statements, a sum-up of the materials covered in the previous 3 phases gets made.
The 5th of 6 phases: Jury instructions
This is when the judge reviews the legal points that pertain to the ongoing personal injury case. The jurists also receive a reminder from the judge. Each of them is told to base their decision on the facts, and not on any subjective feelings.
The last of the 6 phases: Deliberation and verdict
After the jurists have received their instructions, then those 12 men and women take part in the procedure known as deliberations. During the deliberations, those 12 men and women study their notes, and have a chance to look more closely at the different pieces of evidence.
Once all 12 of them have agreed on a verdict, the judge gets contacted, and the trial resumes. The jury gives the judge a paper, which contains the results of the deliberations. The judge reads that verdict to the court, and then states the defendant’s obligations.