Jury Selection and Voir Dire in Civil Trials

Voir dire is the questioning of prospective jurors before a civil trial begins. Its purpose is narrow: to find out whether anyone in the panel cannot decide the case fairly, and to give each side the information needed to exercise challenges. In federal civil cases the process is framed by Rule 47 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which lets the court examine jurors itself or permit the parties to do so, and by 28 U.S.C. § 1870, which gives each party three peremptory challenges. State courts run their own systems, and how much questioning lawyers are allowed to do differs sharply between them.

Where the panel comes from

Before anyone is questioned, a pool has to exist. Federal district courts draw names from voter registration lists, often supplemented by driver license or other public lists, under a plan each district adopts and publishes. State courts use similar source lists set by state statute.

People summoned are screened for basic qualification — age, residence in the district, citizenship, English ability, absence of a disqualifying criminal history — and for hardship excuses. Only those remaining are brought to a courtroom as a venire, the group from which the trial jury is chosen. The federal judiciary's site publishes general information about jury service and how districts manage summonses.

Note: Civil juries are usually smaller than the twelve people most readers picture. Federal civil juries must begin with at least six and no more than twelve members, all of whom deliberate, and the verdict must be unanimous unless the parties agree otherwise. State rules on size and on whether a supermajority verdict is allowed vary considerably.

What voir dire is actually for

Judges describe the goal as seating an impartial jury, not a favorable one. Questioning is meant to uncover connections to the parties, experiences that would make neutrality difficult, and firm views about the type of claim being tried.

What it is not for is arguing the case. Courts routinely shut down questions designed to preview a theory, extract commitments about how a juror would rule, or educate the panel about the evidence to come. Judges also police questions that intrude further into private life than the case requires.

The format varies more than any other part of a civil trial:

Rule 47 leaves the choice largely to the trial judge, which is why practice differs from courtroom to courtroom even within one district. Self-represented parties in particular should ask about the format at the pretrial conference; our guide to where pro se parties get stuck covers the questions worth asking early.

Two kinds of challenge

A challenge for cause asks the judge to remove a juror because something makes impartiality doubtful: a relationship with a party or witness, a financial stake in the outcome, or a stated inability to follow the law. There is no limit on the number, but the judge decides, and judges often first ask whether the juror can set the concern aside — a rehabilitation question that frequently defeats the challenge.

A peremptory challenge removes a juror without any stated reason. In federal civil cases, 28 U.S.C. § 1870 entitles each party to three, and the court may treat several parties on the same side as a single party or allow additional strikes. State allotments differ, and some states give more in cases seeking larger damages.

Watch out: Peremptories are finite and cannot be recovered. Using one on a juror who could have been struck for cause is a routine tactical loss, so experienced trial lawyers make the cause record first.

The limits: Batson, Edmonson, and what followed

Peremptory challenges are not unreviewable. In Batson v. Kentucky (1986), the Supreme Court held that striking jurors on the basis of race violates equal protection, and set out a burden-shifting procedure: the objecting side shows a prima facie case of discrimination, the striking side offers a neutral explanation, and the judge decides whether purposeful discrimination occurred.

Edmonson v. Leesville Concrete Co. (1991) extended that rule to civil litigation, holding that a private litigant's use of peremptory strikes involves enough state action to bring the constitutional limit into play. Later decisions extended the principle to strikes based on sex. Several states have gone further by rule, adopting procedures aimed at strikes correlated with race even where discriminatory intent is not shown — an area still developing as of mid-2026.

These objections have to be made when the strike is exercised, before the panel is sworn. Raising the point later, or on appeal for the first time, generally fails. The constitutional framing here overlaps with the state-action analysis discussed in our article on Section 1983 claims and qualified immunity.

From panel to sworn jury

1. Before trial

   The court rules on any proposed questionnaire and on the parties' submitted voir dire questions.

2. Panel seated

   Prospective jurors are called into the box or numbered in the gallery, and the judge gives introductory instructions.

3. Questioning

   General questions to the group, then individual follow-up. Sensitive answers may be taken at sidebar.

4. Cause challenges

   Argued and ruled on, often outside the panel's hearing so that removed jurors are not identified as struck by a party.

5. Peremptory strikes

   Exercised in the order the court directs, frequently on a written strike sheet passed between the parties.

6. Swearing in

   The remaining jurors, and any alternates, are sworn and preliminary instructions are given.

Once the jury is sworn, the evidentiary phase begins, governed by the rules described in our explainer on authentication, hearsay, and exhibits. Most cases never reach this point at all — the great majority resolve first, often through the routes covered in our guide to mediation and settlement conferences.

Common questions

Can lawyers research jurors online before selection?

Passive review of publicly available information is generally allowed, and many courts assume it happens. What is prohibited nearly everywhere is any contact: friend requests, follows, messages, or anything that would notify a juror they are being examined. Some judges issue standing orders on the subject and require disclosure of what research was done. Check the court's order before anyone starts searching.

What happens if a juror hides something during questioning?

If it comes out during trial, the court may remove the juror and seat an alternate. If it surfaces afterward, a party can seek a new trial, but the standard is demanding: the party generally must show the juror failed to answer honestly on a material question and that a correct answer would have supported a valid challenge for cause. Mere non-disclosure is usually not enough.

Do both sides have to agree on the final jury?

No. There is no approval right. Each side removes jurors it does not want using its available challenges, and whoever remains after the strikes are exercised is the jury. This is why voir dire is often described as a process of deselection rather than selection: nobody chooses jurors, they only eliminate them within a limited allowance.

Can a civil case be tried without a jury?

Yes. A jury trial has to be demanded within the time the rules require, and the right does not extend to every civil claim — equitable claims are generally tried to the judge. Parties may also waive a jury by agreement. Where no proper demand is made, the case proceeds as a bench trial and the judge makes the findings of fact, reviewed on appeal under a deferential standard.

If you are heading into jury selection

1. Confirm the format and time limit. Preparing attorney-conducted questions for a judge-conducted courtroom wastes the one chance you get.
2. Submit proposed questions on time. Courts commonly require them with the pretrial materials and will not add topics later.
3. Write open questions. Yes-or-no questions rarely surface bias; asking a juror to describe an experience does.
4. Make the cause record first. Ask the follow-up that establishes a disqualifying view before spending a peremptory.
5. Object to a discriminatory strike immediately. The objection must be on the record before the jury is sworn.
6. Track alternates. Know who they are and how the court will substitute if a juror is excused mid-trial.

Practical step: Read the court's jury plan and the trial judge's standing order together with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or your state's equivalent. Cornell's civil procedure overview gives orientation, and state judiciaries are reachable through USA.gov.