This mock jury selection exercise is designed to
help you understand the process of establishing
an impartial jury. While many of us understand the
process of how jurors collaborate and deliberate on
a case, the selection process is not often discussed
or well understood. Many movies and television
shows demonstrate how lawyers persuade jurors
when presenting an argument; however, few media
sources show the process of forming jury panels and
selecting jury members for individual trials.
This simulation will assess jury selection in
hypothetical scenarios. When incorporated into a
lesson, this task will simulate the entire process of
jury selection. The re-enactment of this task requires
students to play the role of lawyers, a judge, a
registrar, prospective jurors, and the accused.
INTRODUCTION TO JURY DUTY
Jury duty is one of many responsibilities that
Canadian citizens are required to carry out. A jury is
a group of individuals that makes a decision about
a court hearing in an impartial manner. By being
impartial, jurors are required to reach a decision
based on the evidence presented in court, and reach
a decision without any biases. In order to ensure
that jurors are not biased, a series of steps occurs in
the jury selection process to ensure that qualified
and impartial jurors are selected to participate
on juries.
The jury selection process is a critical process for
the parties involved in a legal matter because the
jury will ultimately decide the outcome of the trial.
Therefore, it is important for both sides to have an
impartial jury.
THE JURIES ACT
The legislation governing the rules and regulations
related to juries in Ontario is called the Juries Act. 1
It outlines the laws related to the eligibility of jurors,
the preparation of jury rolls, the preparation of
jury panels, the drawing of juries during a trial, and
bringing challenges against potential jurors on the
grounds that they might be biased or otherwise
unsuitable to act as a juror.
ELIGIBILITY OF JURORS
According to s. 2 of the Juries Act, in order to be eligible
to act as a juror in Ontario, one must:
(1) reside in Ontario,
(2) be a Canadian citizen,
(3) be at least 18 years of age at the beginning of
the year in which the jury is selected, and
(4) be able to speak, read, and understand English
or French.
A person may be ineligible to serve as a juror
depending on their occupation, their connection
with the court matter that they are a potential juror
for, the recency of their previous jury service, or any
personal circumstances that may
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