A mock jury is a group of average people gathered together to look at the facts of a case and reach a verdict. A mock trial is the process of delivering the information of a pretend case to a mock jury to study what the outcome will be. For anywhere from a few hours to a full day you can be part of a group of people a jury research company has put together to act as a “jury” in a pretend case. Read on to learn how it works.
Mock Trials and Jury Research
Example #1: A prosecutor in Orange County, California has a high-profile case coming up and wants to see how their argument will go over with the jury. The prosecutor’s office hires a research company to find 12 people in Orange County who are available during the day. They are looking for six men and six women of different ages, races, and income brackets—just a general sample of the county population.
The jury research company looks in their database, calls you, and offers to pay you $200 to spend eight hours in a mock trial next week where they will have a professionally catered lunch including chef salads, fresh fruit, shrimp cocktail, and a variety of entrees, appetizers, and beverages. After you have all the case facts, you and your fellow mock jurors deliberate, come to a verdict, and go home for the day with full stomachs and fat wallets. The prosecutor leaves with a better understanding of what the jurors in the real case will do in the deliberation room and how to perfect the argument for the case.
Example #2: A defense attorney has a white-collar crime case where he wants to see what the best jury selection would be. He hires a research company to find 50 different people in the Chicago area to come in for two hours, read the facts and give a one person verdict (away from the group) each. That way he can see who is more sympathetic to his client--women, men, minorities, high income, low income, etc.
The jury research company calls you and offers you $40 for the job. You go on the requested day in the morning to find coffee, orange juice, donuts, and muffins waiting for you and the other jurors. You sit down, read the facts, give your verdict and go home. The attorney looks over the verdicts of all 50 jurors to find out which type of juror is going to give his client the verdict he is looking for.
Example #3: A large law firm has a corporate client that is in the middle of a lawsuit. They hire a research company to assemble a mock jury in the Charlotte, NC area to present the facts to see whether they should try to go to trial or settle out of court. The research company calls you and offers you $100 to be a mock juror for this case that should only take four hours. You go at the arranged time and are offered many different snacks and beverages to start the day right. After this you are presented with the facts in the case, at which time you and the other jurors deliberate, come to a verdict, and go home.
THESE are examples of what mock juries and mock trials are, how they work, and why they’re important.
Practice Juries in Person and eJury Work
There are four key components to a mock jury:
- Selecting the right people to listen to the facts in the case.
- Presenting the facts and arguing the case as if it were the real trial.
- Observing the jurors’ deliberation process to see how they think, what the verdict is, and why they came to that verdict.
- Making those changes that will help them win their case.
YOUR job, in becoming a member of mock trials and getting paid for it, is two-fold:
- To get into the mock jury.
- To give the trial the same consideration and thought that you would give as a real juror in a real trial in a real courtroom.
So how do you get paid to serve as a mock juror on a practice jury?
Practice Trial Research Companies
Most practice trial companies are market research firms that handle focus groups as well as in-person juries and eJuries (online juries). These companies help lawyers to develop courtroom strategies and try out different approaches.
Some examples of such companies include:
- JuryBank
- SCIResearch
- Magnus Research Consultants
Jury research firms like these, and others, help to select the right people to be part of mock trials. The only way to be asked to serve - and get paid for your opinion - is to contact mock trial research consultants and ask about signing up for mock juror pools.
Keep in mind that these practice trials take place every day, in person and online through webinars and chat rooms, and that people are paid $40, $50, $100 and more to participate. Research all opportunities and look out for consumer education campaigns, survey signups, and market research company promotions to become a practice juror.
Melanie Zoltan - Melanie Zoltan is a former college professor and administrator who has written for About.com, PCWorld, Brain Child, Thomson Gale, and ...
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