Choosing the Right Lawyer is No ACCIDENT- A Personal Injury Guide - By Jeff Adelman (2025 Edition)

Choosing the Right Lawyer is No Accident
JURY VERDICT
After both sides have given a closing argument, the judge reads the final
jury instructions the attorneys have agreed on, which the jury gets a
printed copy of along with the verdict form.
The jury leaves their phones, personal belongings, and other items on
their chairs and goes into the secluded deliberation room. The jury elects
a leader, known as the foreperson, and they figure out what they can
unanimously agree upon should be the result of your case. This could
take ten minutes, it could take days, but it must be unanimous.
In Florida, once they all agree on a decision, it’s written down by the
foreperson on the verdict form, the jury returns to the courtroom, and the
judge’s clerk reads the form aloud. The judge will then poll the jury,
asking each of them individually, “Is this your verdict?” Then the jury is
excused.
The jury, not the judge, has the final say in civil cases, and this is sacred
in our country. Our justice system may not be perfect, but few countries
allow other citizens to arbitrate disputes like we do in the United States.
The President of the United States could walk into a courtroom and say,
“I want the defendant to win.” It doesn’t matter. Whatever the jury
decides, there is nothing any judge or any other leader can do to pierce
the sanctity of the jury’s decision. This right is mandated by the 7 th
Amendment to the United States Constitution.
Both sides do have an opportunity to appeal jury verdicts, but most of
the time, the jury’s verdict is upheld by appellate courts.
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Jeff Adelman, B.C.S., Esq.