Jury Duty Part 1: Am I qualified to be a juror?

“There were eleven votes for 'guilty.' It's not easy for me to raise my hand and send a boy off to die without talking about it first.” - Reginald Rose, Twelve Angry MenJury service is a civil duty. Our system would collapse without the diligent individuals who respond and serve, but the law does provide exemptions and exceptions which may be utilized to be excused. Part 2 of this blog will explore those circumstances.General Exemptions

Louisiana provides two general exemptions from jury service.

1 - Age. Persons seventy years of age or older shall be exempt from jury service and may decline to serve as jurors. La. Const. Ann. art. V, § 33. However, they are free to serve if otherwise qualified.

2 - Prior Service. The second, all “persons who have served as grand or petit jurors in criminal cases or as trial jurors in civil cases or in a central jury pool during a period of two years immediately preceding their selection for jury service.” La. Sup. Ct. R. 25.

No exemption is automatic. A prospective juror qualifying for one of the above exemptions must assert the exemption by contacting the appropriate jury commission.

Recognized Excuses

In criminal cases, a juror may be excused when such service “would result in undue hardship or extreme inconvenience.” C.Cr.P. art. 783

In civil cases, a juror may be excused when service would result in “undue or extreme physical or financial hardship.” However, these circumstances are limited to circumstances in which an individual would:

1. Be required to abandon a person under his or her personal care or supervision due to the impossibility of obtaining an appropriate substitute care giver during the period of participation in the jury pool or on the jury; or

2. Incur costs that would have a substantial adverse impact on the payment of the individual's necessary daily living expenses or on those for whom he or she provides the principal means of support; or

3. Suffer physical hardship due to an existing illness or disease. La. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 13:3042

With respect to both criminal and civil service, a request for excusal can be mailed to the issuing court and should include an explanation of circumstances. In most cases, the letter must also include supporting documentation, such as, “state income tax returns, medical statements from licensed physicians, proof of dependency or guardianship, and similar documents, which the judge finds to clearly support the request to be excused.” “Failure to provide documentation shall result in a denial of the request for a waiver.” La. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 13:3042You should serve if you can but, if you need to be excused, questions regarding exemptions, excusals, and/or qualifications should be directed to the appropriate jury commissioner’s office.

La Code Evid. Art. 704 addresses the use of expert testimony in Louisiana Courts and provides, “Testimony in the form of an opinion or inference otherwise admissible is not to be excluded solely because it embraces an ultimate issue to be decided by the trier of fact.” Though the text of this article is simple, Louisiana trial courts often face questions about when an expert’s opinion crosses a line and invades the jury’s fact-finding function. These questions often arise in the context of Daubert hearings under La. Code Civ. P. art. 1425.

The Louisiana Supreme Court recently addressed this issue in Hulin v. Snow, where the Court was asked to review the extent to which an expert in a civil case could offer testimony that addressed the ultimate issues of law and fact in the case. The ultimate issue in the Hulin case, which involved parental care, was the alleged negligence of the defendants. The Court examined multiple tendered opinions of the plaintiffs’ expert, including expert testimony about the defendants’ negligence and credibility.

In a Per Curiam opinion, the Court ruled that it was improper for the expert to testify on the ultimate issues of whether the defendants were negligent or credible. It held that “(a)lthough experts may aid the trial court in the determinations of ultimate facts, the final conclusions drawn from those facts belong exclusively to the trier of fact.” The testimony of plaintiffs’ expert stated conclusions about these ultimate issues. Therefore, it was inadmissible.

However, the Court did allow the expert, a board-certified pediatrician, to opine on the parental care of the defendants. “Even though this testimony may embrace some of the ultimate issues to be decided by the trier of fact, it is permissible.” It appears the Court found that this testimony did not state conclusions about ultimate issues, as the Court held that the trier of fact could accept or reject the expert’s opinions on parental care as they relate to ultimate facts.

Reference:

Hulin v. Snow, 2023-00530 (La. 6/26/23), --- So.3d ---, 2023 WL 4199310.

Thousands of people are currently dealing with the devastating flooding in Baton Rouge and surrounding areas. Here are a few pieces of information that may assist you as you begin to recover from this event:

1. Do your best to document your property damage claim as best you can. Take as many pictures of the damage as possible, whether of your house, commercial building, personal contents or inventory. These photos will be your proof of damage for whatever damage claim you are able to make, whether through your insurance company or otherwise.
2. Similarly, try and compile whatever pictures you can of your house or business, and its contents, from before the flood. To the extent, there is a dispute of whether a specific item was damaged or not, or even existed in the home or building before the flood, these pictures will be invaluable.
3. As soon as possible, attempt to itemize all of the contents in your home. A handwritten list is fine. Go through each room and attempt to list out every one of your possessions. Try and identify the make or model of each item, what you paid for it, and how old it is. Some insurance companies will require this specific information before you will be paid for each item. Of course, it is unlikely that you will have purchase documents for each item in your possession. Although this type of documentation is not required to prove your claim, it is obviously helpful for the insurance company to process it.
4. Keep records of what you spend to live elsewhere, including food and toiletries. If you rent a hotel room or are required to rent a house, make sure to keep records of what you pay.
5. Likewise, keep good records of any expenses you incur to repair your home or business. An organized and well-documented insurance or property damage claim is always better received and more quickly processed than one that is not.
6. With respect to insurance claims, and to the extent the policy provides coverage for your specific loss, an insurance company has an obligation, by law, to pay all undisputed amounts to you within a certain period of time. In other words, your insurance company has to at least pay you for everything that is undisputed. If there is a legitimate dispute over something, the insurance company can withhold payment for those items but must pay you for the items for which there is no disagreement. If the insurance company does withhold payment without a legitimate reason or fails to pay you within a certain amount of time, it may be responsible for certain statutory penalties and costs. You will need to discuss this with an attorney if you feel your insurance company is not treating you fairly.
7. To this point, because the insurance company must pay all undisputed amounts if there remain any disputed items, do not sign anything until the claim is fully resolved. You are not required to sign anything to receive any undisputed money under your policy.
8. If you have flood insurance, depending on the policy language, you may be eligible to receive immediate, emergency payments. Ask your insurance company what your policy provides, but do not assume what you are told is correct. Ask for a copy of your policy and read it for yourself.
9. To date, President Obama has made available federal disaster aid to residents of the parishes of East Baton Rouge, Livingston, Tangipahoa, and St. Helena. If you do not have flood insurance, you should immediately register with FEMA. You can also call FEMA at 800-621-3362. More information about the available federal assistance, including those for some businesses, can be found here.
10. The Louisiana State Bar Association and the Baton Rouge Bar Association will be providing free legal services to assist anyone with any legal issues arising from this disaster. For now, you can call the LSBA at 504-566-1600 or 800-421-5722 or the BRBA at 225-344-4803. More information will be disseminated as efforts are further coordinated.

Hopefully, this information will provide you with a little bit of information about the property damage claim process.