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Jury trials are disappearing in the State of Texas.
So-called "tort reform" is killing the people's right to a trial of their peers. Caps on penalties, increasing court costs, and skyrocketing usage of binding mandatory arbitration are taking cases out of the hands of juries and into the hands of judges and arbitrators.
Practically speaking, this means that tons of cases are never making it to a courtroom in the first place. In the last 15 years, Texas has seen a two-thirds drop in the number of jury trials along with a 30% rise in motions for summary judgment, all while the number of lawsuits has gone up by %25. This increases the power of judges and of defendants who have lots of resources (usually that means big bidniss, mmmkay). The little guy is getting shooed out the courthouse door rather than getting his or her day in court.
I believe this has a sinister, less-considered side effect too: ordinary people will forget (or never even know) what jury duty is like. Individuals may breathe a sigh of relief when they don't get picked for jury duty or when a jury trial is called off at the last minute in favor of arbitration, but collectively this hurts our democracy. Jurisprudence belongs to the people and reminds us that ordinary people are the backbone of the country. It's yet another civic duty that we are all too willing to throw away (and that powerful interests are all too happy to help us throw away in the name of efficiency).
Again, I really do doubt that people will be outraged by this, although they should be. The state of American education when it comes to the law and to civics is dismal.
There is no cheerful quip at the end of this blog. Our legal system is in serious trouble and we don't even realize it.
