Arizona Personal Injury Jury Trial Instructions
Personal injury cases are either settled, usually by an insurance carrier and the injured party agreeing on a settlement amount, or the case may result in an arbitration or a jury trial. Jurors are told that jury service has long been an important part of the justice system, that while it may be an inconvenience, jury service is an important individual responsibility.
At the beginning and the end of an Arizona personal injury jury trial the jury will be instructed by the judge and will receive numerous instructions regarding how to apply the law to the facts of the case. Witnesses will testify, the jury will be told to consider what witness testimony to accept or reject, what part, or none of it. Expert witnesses may testify, including doctors, or accident reconstructionists. The jury will be told that it may accept of reject the testimony in whole or in part and give the testimony the weight they think it deserves.
Jurors are further instructed not to do any research or investigation, consult any
individuals, newspaper, books, or the internet. The jurors are told not to use electronic
devices to obtain or share information, including tweeting, texting, blogging, emailing or
any other means.
At the end of an Arizona personal injury jury trial the judge will instruct the jury regarding
the factors for the jury to consider in deciding the full amount of money that will fairly
compensate the injured party, as a result of the adverse party’s negligence.
The damages that the jury may consider in a personal injury case include the following:
1. The nature, extent, and duration of the injury.
2. The pain, discomfort, suffering, disability, disfigurement, and anxiety already
experienced, and reasonably probable to be experienced in the future as a result
of the injury.
3. Reasonable expenses of necessary medical care, treatment, and services
rendered, and reasonably probable to be incurred in the future.
4. Lost earnings to date, and any decrease in earning power or capacity in the future.
5. Loss of care, affection, companionship.
6. Loss of enjoyment of life, that is, the participation in life’s activities enjoyed before
the injury.
When a permanent injury is shown the jury may also be given an instruction by the Court
to consider the amount of future damages as a result of the permanent injury, if so the
jury will be allowed to consider the number of years of the life expectancy of the injured
party.
The damages that a jury may consider in a wrongful death of a spouse, parent or child,
resulting from the death of the decedent due to another party’s negligence include the
following:
1. The loss of love, affection, companionship, care, protection, and guidance since
the death and in the future.
2. The pain, grief, sorrow, anguish, stress, shock, and mental suffering already
experienced, and reasonably probable to be lost in the future.
3. The income and services that have already been lost as a result of the death, and
that are reasonable probable to be lost in the future.
4. Funeral costs
5. Expenses of medical care and for the injury that resulted in the death.