Constitutionality and the Six Member Jury
In June of this year, an amendment to 735 ILCS 5/2-1105 went into effect, reducing the size of juries in civil trials in Illinois from twelve jurors to six. The ostensible purpose of the reduction in jury size was to accommodate a rise in juror pay (from $17.20 per day in Cook County to $25 for the first day and $50 per day thereafter in all counties). The Federal courts have permitted 6-person juries since the 1970’s and Illinois has allowed such juries in civil cases below $50,000.
In late December 2015, however, a Circuit Court judge in Cook County declared the change unconstitutional. His ruling will likely be appealed.
The constitutionality question stems from the Illinois Constitution, not the federal Constitution. At the 1970 Constitutional Convention in Illinois, delegates explicitly rejected a proposal to reduce the size of the civil jury and Article I, Section 13 of the 1970 state constitution simply states “[t]he right of trial by jury as heretofore enjoyed shall remain inviolate.” Case law under the prior state constitution had declared twelve jurors essential to the process of a fair trial. Therefore, Judge Gomolinski’s ruling holds that the statutory reduction of civil juries contradicts Section 13.
The Illinois Association of Defense Council has written in opposition to the change from a constitutional perspective, while other publications have discussed the impact on litigation strategy. Shari Diamond, a professor at Northwestern University School of Law has raised concerns about a detrimental impact on the diversity of juries which comes with a smaller jury. Chicago Appleseed and Chicago Council of Lawyers sent a letter to then-Governor Quinn, urging veto of the measure because of the potential impact on minority representation on juries.
Although government requires a balance of judicial economy and administrative efficiency against the fairness and accessibility of courts, justice demands we balance in favor of protecting the rights of persons in court. We will be watching this case closely to see where it leads.