Clarity breakfast (2017) – Plain language in jury instructions
London, England
05 - 05 April 2017
Professor Cheryl Thomas, Professor of Judicial Studies at University College London, will tell us about her research into jurors’ understanding of the instructions judges give them. Her 2010 study, ‘Are Juries Fair?‘, found that when judges provide written directions on the law to jurors this helps jurors better understand how specific legal terms are used in cases. Last year, the Lord Chief Justice commissioned research by Professor Thomas into how to help jurors better understand their legal responsibilities as serving jurors, after sentencing two jurors for ignoring a judge’s instructions on how to behave.