PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE-UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES MAY COUNSEL ASK JURORS REGARDING THEIR INTEREST IN INSURANCE COMPANIES, ON TRIAL OF A CASE AGAINST AN INSURED DEFENDANT

Authors

Edwin Boos, University of Michigan Law SchoolFollow

Abstract

From a verdict in favor of the plaintiff in a personal injury action, defendant appeals, alleging as error questions repeatedly asked the jurors in their voir dire examination by plaintiff over defendant's objection. Plaintiff examined the jurors as to their connections, if any, with insurance companies in general and with Lloyd's specifically. All questions were answered in the negative. The argument of the defendant is that an affidavit, which had been previously presented to the court and to the plaintiff by the defendant, showing that no person on the jury list was in any way interested in Lloyd's or any other insurance company, made it unnecessary for the plaintiff to question the jurors on this point in order to obtain a jury free from bias .. Defendant contends that these circumstances indicated that the questions must have been asked in bad faith and for the sole purpose of prejudicing the jury against the defendant. Three justices agreed with defendant but the majority felt that the affidavit was insufficient because it did not aver that the persons on the jury list had no close friends or relatives connected with Lloyd's or other insurance companies who might be interested in the outcome of the trial. Held, judgment affirmed. Counsel's questions were made in good faith for the purpose of insuring his client· an impartial jury and not for the purpose of prejudicing the jury against the defendant. Moore v. Edmonds, (Ill. 1944), 52 N.E. (2d) 216.

Recommended Citation

Edwin Boos, PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE-UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES MAY COUNSEL ASK JURORS REGARDING THEIR INTEREST IN INSURANCE COMPANIES, ON TRIAL OF A CASE AGAINST AN INSURED DEFENDANT, 43 Mich. L. Rev. 621 (1944).
Available at: https://repository.law.umich.edu/mlr/vol43/iss3/13