ABA Family Legal Guide

How the Legal System Works

The Civil Trial: Step by Step

Juries

Must all jury verdicts be unanimous?

In the federal system, jury decisions must be unanimous. If the jury is not unanimous (if it is irrevocably divided it is called a hung jury), a mistrial is declared. The case may be retried later or dismissed.

There is more variation among the states. In more than a third of the states, agreement of only three-fourths or five-sixths of the jurors is needed to render a verdict in civil cases.