Petit jury

A trial jury that hears evidence and decides questions of fact in a court case. It is traditionally distinguished from a grand jury, which investigates whether charges should be brought.

Jury selection: The process of choosing jurors eligible to serve in a particular trial. Voir dire and challenges determine which people make up the petit jury.
Jury: A group of people sworn to decide questions submitted to them in a legal proceeding. A petit jury is the trial-stage form of this broader institution.
Grand jury: A body that examines evidence to determine whether criminal charges should be brought. It investigates probable cause rather than deciding a trial’s disputed facts.
Magna Carta: The 1215 charter that limited royal authority and became influential in constitutional history. Its jury-related language became part of later accounts of trial by jury.
Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution: The constitutional amendment guaranteeing specified rights to people accused of crimes. It protects the right to a jury trial in qualifying criminal prosecutions.
Voir dire: Questioning prospective jurors to assess their qualifications and possible biases. This examination helps identify jurors able to decide the case impartially.
Question of fact: An issue resolved by determining what happened from evidence. Deciding such issues is the petit jury’s central role.
Bench trial: A trial in which a judge, rather than a jury, decides the facts and applies the law. It replaces the petit jury as the fact-finder.
Assize of Clarendon: A 1166 English royal ordinance that organized local accusation and criminal investigation. It helped shape the accusatory practices from which the grand jury developed.
Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution: The constitutional amendment preserving jury trials in certain federal civil cases. It extends petit-jury fact-finding to a category of civil disputes.

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