Trial by jury in Scotland
Encyclopedia
In Scotland trial by jury is used in serious criminal cases and less commonly in civil cases. There are some similarities with the jury system in England and Wales but some important differences.
In Scotland there has never been a requirement for verdicts to be unanimous; they are reached by simple majority. (People were occasionally hanged on majority verdicts in Scotland e.g. Susan Newell
.).
Much of the law covering criminal cases is contained in the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995. They have a jury of 15, if jurors drop out e.g. because of illness a minimum of 12 is needed to continue. The backing of at least eight jurors is needed to return a guilty verdict, even if the number drops below 15. It is not possible to have a hung jury
; if there is not sufficient support for any verdict then this is treated as a verdict of not guilty. The jury has a choice of three verdicts: guilty (a conviction), not guilty (acquittal) and not proven
(acquittal).
Civil cases have a jury of 12, with a minimum of 10 needed for the trial to continue. It is possible to have a hung jury if it is completely tied after at least three hours deliberation.
The rules of eligibility for jury service are broadly similar to England.
In criminal cases, there need to be at least 30 potential jurors present in the court for the balloting of a jory to begin. The names of the potential jurors are written on paper slips and drawn out of a glass bowl in open court by the clerk. The jurors then take the oath collectively, they just swear by "almighty God" without using any religious text, those who prefer to affirm then do so collectively.
The pool of potential jurors is chosen purely at random, Scottish courts have set themselves against any form of jury vetting.
In Scotland there has never been a requirement for verdicts to be unanimous; they are reached by simple majority. (People were occasionally hanged on majority verdicts in Scotland e.g. Susan Newell
Susan Newell
Susan Newell was the last woman to be hanged in Scotland. She killed newspaper boy, John Johnston during a petty squabble, having failed to obtain a newspaper without paying for it. She killed her victim via strangulation on 20 May 1923....
.).
Much of the law covering criminal cases is contained in the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995. They have a jury of 15, if jurors drop out e.g. because of illness a minimum of 12 is needed to continue. The backing of at least eight jurors is needed to return a guilty verdict, even if the number drops below 15. It is not possible to have a hung jury
Hung jury
A hung jury or deadlocked jury is a jury that cannot, by the required voting threshold, agree upon a verdict after an extended period of deliberation and is unable to change its votes due to severe differences of opinion.- England and Wales :...
; if there is not sufficient support for any verdict then this is treated as a verdict of not guilty. The jury has a choice of three verdicts: guilty (a conviction), not guilty (acquittal) and not proven
Not proven
Not proven is a verdict available to a court in Scotland.Under Scots law, a criminal trial may end in one of three verdicts: one of conviction and two of acquittal ....
(acquittal).
Civil cases have a jury of 12, with a minimum of 10 needed for the trial to continue. It is possible to have a hung jury if it is completely tied after at least three hours deliberation.
The rules of eligibility for jury service are broadly similar to England.
In criminal cases, there need to be at least 30 potential jurors present in the court for the balloting of a jory to begin. The names of the potential jurors are written on paper slips and drawn out of a glass bowl in open court by the clerk. The jurors then take the oath collectively, they just swear by "almighty God" without using any religious text, those who prefer to affirm then do so collectively.
The pool of potential jurors is chosen purely at random, Scottish courts have set themselves against any form of jury vetting.