Family Law Attorney in Dallas, Texas
Why would I want a jury trial in my divorce trial?
Why would I want a jury trial in my divorce trial?
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00:05
jury trials and family law matters are
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pretty limited
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meaning that a jury can only make
00:11
decisions about very limited issues
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so in a child custody scenario a jury
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can make a decision
00:18
about uh conservatorship
00:21
being are the parties going to be named
00:23
joint managing conservators
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and who is going to be given the
00:27
exclusive right
00:29
to determine the primary domicile
00:32
of the child or they could name one
00:35
party
00:37
soul managing conservator and the other
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party possessory conservator
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or i guess technically and i had a case
00:43
like this once
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they could name one party soul managing
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and not
00:48
named the other party a conservator
00:51
even without terminating their parental
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rights so
00:55
that’s a scenario where
00:58
to actually go to a jury on something
01:00
like that maybe you got a child
01:01
custody evaluation that wasn’t positive
01:05
for your client
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maybe you’ve had rulings by the court on
01:09
other issues that were not positive for
01:12
your client or where the
01:15
court has made certain comments where
01:19
it makes you believe that they’re really
01:22
going to rely heavily on this negative
01:24
child custody evaluation we need to get
01:27
that in front of 12 people
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that are going to better understand the
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facts scenario
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and give us a better chance so that’s
01:34
where you really would want that on a
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child custody scenario
01:38
on a property situation kind of the same
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thing from the standpoint if you’re
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getting a bunch of negative
01:44
results from the judge themselves but
01:47
the court or the jury
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is limited in what determinations they
01:51
can make so they can look at
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the characterization of property meaning
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is it separate or is it community and
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that can be a huge deal
01:59
obviously the other is they can make a
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determination
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on what the value of the property is so
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that can be significant on one of the
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issues that we can run into on one of
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these closely held companies is there
02:12
can be a lot of what’s called retained
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earnings
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okay and that should be reflected in
02:18
what the value
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of the company is someone else might
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value the company
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and not be looking at that issue
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as much as the most the time the
02:29
non-moneyed spouse
02:30
is is looking at that so those are
02:32
significant issues that sometimes
02:34
you want to take to a jury if you find
02:36
that you know the judge is just not
02:38
making
02:39
decisions that are really in your favor
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and that can be a really good decision
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sometimes
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it does however it lengthens the process
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which adds a pretty fair amount of money
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so you need to think long and hard if
02:51
that’s something you really want to do
Contact Mark Scroggins
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Dallas, TX family law attorney Mark Scroggins talks about the circumstances in which you would want a jury trial in your divorce trial. He explains that jury trials in family law are fairly limited in scope. In a child custody case, for example, a jury can decide who will be named joint managing conservators, or whether one party will be the sole managing conservator while the other is given possessory rights. In some rare cases, a jury could even name one party as the sole managing conservator without formally naming the other party as a conservator, all without terminating parental rights.
A jury is typically considered when there are concerns about prior rulings or negative evaluations. For instance, if a child custody evaluation is unfavorable or prior court decisions suggest the judge may heavily rely on that evaluation, presenting the case to twelve jurors might offer a better chance for a fair outcome.
In property disputes, juries can determine the characterization of property—whether it is separate or community—which can significantly impact the division. They can also decide on property valuations, which is crucial in closely held businesses where retained earnings may affect the company’s overall value. Often, the non-moneyed spouse will focus on these retained earnings more than the other party.
While taking a case to a jury can sometimes improve outcomes, it also extends the process and increases costs. He emphasizes that it’s a decision that must be weighed carefully, considering both potential benefits and the added time and expense.
