verdict

(vûr'dĭkt)

1. Law. The finding of a jury in a trial.
2. An expressed conclusion; a judgment or opinion: the verdict of history.

[Middle English verdit, from Anglo-Norman : ver, true (from Latin vērus) + dit, speech (from Latin dictum, from neuter past participle of dīcere, to say).]

View more Law & Legal Issues videos

Definition: law judgment
Antonyms: accusation

The formal decision or finding made by a jury concerning the questions submitted to it during a trial. The jury reports the verdict to the court, which generally accepts it.

The decision of a jury is called a verdict. A jury is charged with hearing the evidence presented by both sides in a trial, determining the facts of the case, applying the relevant law to the facts, and voting on a final verdict. There are different types of verdicts, and the votes required to render a verdict differ depending on whether the jury hears a criminal or civil case. Though most verdicts are upheld by the judge presiding at the trial, the judge has the discretion to set aside a verdict in certain circumstances.

A general verdict is the most common form of verdict. It is a comprehensive decision on an issue. In civil cases the jury makes a decision in favor of the plaintiff or the defendant, determining liability and the amount of money damages. In criminal cases the jury decides "guilty" or "not guilty" on the charge or charges against the defendant. In cases involving a major crime the verdict must be unanimous. In minor criminal cases, however, some states allow either a majority vote or a vote of 10 to 2. In civil cases many states have moved away from the unanimity requirement and now allow votes of 10 to 2.

A special verdict is sometimes used in civil cases where complex and technical questions of fact are involved and the parties seek to assert greater control over the decision-making process. The judge gives the jury a series of specific, written, factual questions. Based upon the jury's answers, or findings of fact, the judge will determine the verdict. Special verdicts are used only infrequently because parties often have a difficult time agreeing on the precise set of questions.

U.S. law does not permit chance verdicts. A chance verdict is one that has been determined not by deliberation but by a form of chance, such as the flip of a coin or the drawing of lots. Although such verdicts were once acceptable, they are now unlawful.

A directed verdict is not made by a jury. It is a verdict ordered by the court after the evidence has been presented and the court finds it insufficient for a jury to return a verdict for the side with the burden of proof. A court may enter a directed verdict before the jury renders its verdict. If the court allows the jury to make a verdict but then disagrees with the jury's evaluation of the evidence, the court can decide the case by issuing an order. For example, under rule 29 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, a court can grant a judgment of acquittal to a defendant. In civil cases the court can issue a judgment notwithstanding the verdict.

LearnThatWord.com is a free vocabulary and spelling program where you only pay for results!

The formal decision or finding of a jury on the matters or questions duly submitted to them at a trial.

• Decisions, Judgments, and Conditions - verdict: decision of jury
• Judgments and Critiques - verdict: opinion based on evidence
• Legal Procedures and Trials - verdict: decision of jury as to suspect’s guilt or innocence

This article is about the legal finding of fact. For the Agatha Christie play, see Verdict (play). For the magazine by Robert Brinsmead, see Present Truth Magazine. For any of several film and TV dramas, see The Verdict (disambiguation).

The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with the United States and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article and discuss the issue on the talk page. (December 2010)

Criminal procedure
Criminal trials and convictions
Rights of the accused
Fair trial · Speedy trial Jury trial · Counsel Presumption of innocence Exclusionary rule1 Self-incrimination Double jeopardy2
Verdict
Conviction · Acquittal Not proven3 Directed verdict
Sentencing
Mandatory · Suspended Custodial Dangerous offender4, 5 Capital punishment Execution warrant Cruel and unusual punishment Life · Indefinite
Post-sentencing
Parole · Probation Tariff6 · Life licence6 Miscarriage of justice Exoneration · Pardon Sexually violent predator legislation1
Related areas of law
Criminal defenses Criminal law · Evidence Civil procedure
Portals
Law · Criminal justice
1 US courts. 2 Not in English/Welsh courts. 3 Scottish courts. 4 English/Welsh courts. 5 Canadian courts. 6 UK courts.
v · d · e

In law, a verdict is the formal finding of fact made by a jury on matters or questions submitted to the jury by a judge.^[1] The term, from the Latin veredictum, literally means "to say the truth" and is derived from Middle English verdit, from Anglo-Norman: a compound of ver ("true," from the Latin vērus) and dit ("speech," from the Latin dictum, the neuter past participle of dīcere, to say).

Contents 1 Criminal law 2 Compromise verdict 3 General verdict 4 Quotient verdict 5 Sealed verdict 6 Special verdict 7 See also 8 References 9 External links

Criminal law

Main article: Criminal law

In a criminal case, the verdict, which may be either "not guilty" or "guilty"—except in Scotland where the verdict of "not proven" is also available—is handed down by the jury. Different counts in the same case may have different verdicts.

A verdict of guilty in a criminal case is generally followed by a judgment of conviction rendered by the judge, which in turn be followed by sentencing.

In U.S. legal nomenclature, the verdict is the finding of the jury on the questions of fact submitted to it. Once the court (the judge) receives the verdict, the judge enters judgment on the verdict. The judgment of the court is the final order in the case. If the defendant is found guilty, he can choose to appeal the case to the local Court of Appeals.

Compromise verdict

A compromise verdict is a "verdict which is reached only by the surrender of conscientious convictions upon one material issue by some jurors in return for a relinquishment by others of their like settled opinion upon another issue and the result is one which does not command the approval of the whole panel," and, as such, is not permitted.^[2]

General verdict

A General Verdict is one in which the jury makes a complete finding and single conclusion on all issues presented to it. First, the jury finds the facts, as proved by the evidence, then it applies the law as instructed by the court, and finally it returns a verdict in one conclusion that settles the case. Such verdict is reported as follows:

"We the Jury find the issues for the plaintiff (or defendant, as the case may be) and assess his damages at one hundred thousand dollars."

Quotient verdict

A quotient verdict is a special case of a compromise verdict in which jurors determine the damages to be paid to the prevailing party by agreeing that each juror will write down his or her assessment of the damages, and the sum of these numbers is divided by the number of jurors. Quotient verdicts are considered invalid in the United States.^[3]

Sealed verdict

A sealed verdict is a verdict that's put in a sealed envelope when there is a delay in announcing the result, such as waiting for the judge, the parties and the attorneys to come back to court. The verdict is kept in a sealed envelope until court reconvenes and then handed to the judge.^[4]

Special verdict

Main article: Special verdict

In English law, a special verdict is a verdict by a jury that pronounces on the facts of the case but does not draw the ultimate inference of whether the accused is guilty or not; the judge then applies the law and to convict or acquit.^[5][6][7] In the words of William Blackstone, "The jury state the naked facts, as they find them to be proved, and pray the advice of the court thereon".^[8]

The judge forced a special verdict in the famous case of R v. Dudley and Stephens but generally such verdicts should only be returned in the most exceptional cases.^[9][10]

See also

• Jury
• Virtual jury research

References

1. ^ (see Black's Law Dictionary, p. 1398 (5th ed. 1979)
2. ^ "Monti v. Wenkert, 947 A. 2d 261—Conn: Supreme Court 2008". Supreme Court of Connecticut. May 27, 2008. http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=505622980049823997&q=%22947+A.2d+261%22&hl=en&as_sdt=2002. Retrieved 29 November 2010. 
3. ^ "253 F.2d 414". United States Court of Appeals Second Circuit. March 11, 1958. http://ftp.resource.org/courts.gov/c/F2/253/253.F2d.414.162.24590_1.html. Retrieved 29 November 2010. 
4. ^ "Sealed Verdict Law and Definition". http://definitions.uslegal.com/s/sealed-verdict/. Retrieved 2 May 2011. 
5. ^ Lord Mackay of Clashfern (ed.) (2006) Halsbury's Laws of England, Vol.11(3) 4th ed. 2006 reissue, "Criminal Law, Evidence and Procedure", 1339. Special verdict.
6. ^ Morgan, E. M. (1923) "A brief history of special verdicts", Yale Law Journal, 32:575–592
7. ^ Simpson, A. W. B. (1984). Cannibalism and the Common Law: The Story of the Tragic Last Voyage of the Mignonette and the Strange Legal Proceedings to Which It Gave Rise. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp. pp 209–210. ISBN 9780226759425. 
8. ^ Commentaries on the Laws of England (14th ed.) 3 377
9. ^ R v. Bourne (1952) 36 Cr App Rep 125 at 127, CCA, per Lord Goddard CJ
10. ^ R v. Agbim [1979] Crim LR 171, CA

External links

Look up Verdict in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

 Chisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). "Verdict". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. 

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
n. - dom, afgørelse, kendelse

Nederlands (Dutch)
uitspraak, vonnis, beslissing, opinie

Français (French)
n. - (Jur) verdict, (fig) verdict

Deutsch (German)
n. - Urteil, Entscheidung

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (νομ.) ετυμηγορία, απόφαση, (μτφ.) άποψη, γνώμη, κρίση

Italiano (Italian)
sentenza, verdetto

Português (Portuguese)
n. - veredicto (m), julgamento (m), sentença (f)

Русский (Russian)
решение присяжных, суждение

Español (Spanish)
n. - veredicto, fallo, sentencia

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - dom, utslag, omdöme

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
裁决, 判断, 判决

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 裁決, 判斷, 判決

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 평결, 판정

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 評決, 判断, 意見

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) حكم, قرار, قرار المحلفين‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮פסק-דין, משפט, החלטה, דעה‬

If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.

To select your translation preferences click here.