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SHERIFFDOM OF LOTHIAN AND BORDERS

COVID-19

GUIDANCE ON THE RESUMPTION OF CIVIL JURY TRIALS

IN THE ALL SCOTLAND SHERIFF PERSONAL INJURY COURT (ASSPIC)

Introduction

[1] Civil jury trials in ASSPIC, which were suspended during the COVID pandemic in

May 2020, can now resume. The sheriff clerk can, with immediate effect, cite jurors in terms

of Ordinary Cause Rule ('OCR') 36B.3.

[2] Whilst the Coronavirus pandemic continues jurors will be cited to attend the Remote

Jury Centre ('RJC') at the Odeon Cinema Complex, 118 Lothian Road, Edinburgh, EH3 8BQ.

The court will normally sit in Court 15 at Edinburgh Sheriff Court which is equipped with IT

connecting it to the RJC. The arrangements for the conduct of civil jury trials will utilise and

adopt many of the procedures and technology which have allowed sheriff and jury trials to

take place since December 2020.

Fixing of Civil Jury Trials

[3] Civil jury trials require to be fixed with some care as they will necessarily utilise one

of the screens at the RJC, which link directly to a jury court in Edinburgh Sheriff Court

equipped with the IT and which allows the audio and video link to operate. The sheriff clerk

will require to liaise with the solemn criminal business manager and COPFS to identify and

schedule dates as any civil jury trial requires to take the place of a solemn criminal sitting.

Given the pressure on recovery of solemn criminal business it is essential that the court is

informed immediately if it is likely that the civil jury trial may not proceed for any reason.

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Parties are reminded that those involved in litigation have an obligation to take reasonable

care to avoid situations where court time is wasted. Practitioners are therefore encouraged to

contact ASSPIC clerks in the event that settlement is anticipated or the trial is unlikely to

proceed.

[4] Actions in which a civil jury trial has already been allowed will be prioritised. Civil

jury trials will be scheduled to resume during weeks beginning 13 July 2021 and 20 July 2021.

Each case will call by order before a sheriff in ASSPIC. An example of an interlocutor

appointing the cause to call by order and containing a Coronavirus (Scotland) Act 2020

Schedule 4 Direction is attached at Annex A. In all actions where a party or parties seek a

civil jury trial but has not yet been allowed a Schedule 4 Direction will be required and will

normally be incorporated in the interlocutor approving the proposed issue and proposed

counter issue which appoints the issues to be tried by jury.

Jury Citations

[5] Jurors are cited to attend the RJC by amended Civil Juror Citation as shown in

Annex B. Clerks in ASSPIC will monitor and deal with excusal requests; countermanding

juries and updating the Jury Helpline Message Service.

Pre-Trial Matters

[6] When allowing a motion for approval of issues the sheriff is required in terms of OCR

36B.2(9) to authenticate or approve the issue (and any counter-issue) to be put to the jury. This

may be done by electronic signature.

[7] The by-order or procedural hearing is to take place:

(i) 9 weeks prior to the jury trial to confirm that it remains necessary to cite

jurors and

(ii) 8 days prior to the date on which the civil jury trial is fixed to take place

in order to confirm the requirement for jurors to attend and also to deal

with any preliminary matters.

Attention is drawn to paragraph [3] above.

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Civil Jury Trial Procedure

[8] Current civil jury trial procedure requires jurors to be empanelled in person at the RJC

rather than by telephone as happens in criminal jury trials. Jurors will be cited for 9.30am. It

is therefore essential that practitioners ensure that any preliminary discussions between or

amongst parties to the cause or with the court take place well in advance of the jury trial and

not on the morning of the jury trial.

[9] Each screen in the RJC has a socially distanced seating area from where the jurors will

be balloted. Unempanelled jurors should not be seated in any of the 12 allocated juror seats.

Once empanelled each jury member will take their designated seat. Each will be handed juror

packs by the jury attendant. Each jury pack contains: the issue; any counter issue; contact

details form; plain paper and pens.

[10] The clerk of court is responsible for managing the process of empanelling jurors in the

presence of the sheriff and parties’ representatives. More detailed information relating to

procedure on the morning of the trial is attached at Annex C.

[11] Once 12 jury members have been balloted and empanelled the clerk of court will read

out the issue (and any counter issue/s) and ask jurors if they have any personal interest to

declare. In the event of a personal interest being declared it may be necessary to excuse that

juror and select another. The clerk will then administer the Oath/Affirmation.

[12] After the sheriff addresses the jury on procedure and on impartiality (see Annex D)

there will be a short adjournment after which the court will reconvene and unless any juror

raises any further point about personal interest or excusal the sheriff will then excuse the

unempanelled jurors. The sheriff will make certain introductory remarks (see for example,

Annex E) following which the trial will commence with opening speeches.

[13] Upon verdict the jury spokesperson will come forward to the designated microphone

to deliver the jury's verdict to the court.

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[14] This approach has been devised in discussion with staff and judicial colleagues in the

Court of Session who will follow a similar procedure but using the RJC at Fort Kinnaird. SCTS

Staff will be in attendance at the RJC including a SPARQ technician. In the event that any

scheduled civil jury trial has not settled approximately 12 days ahead of the commencement

of the trial, the court will contact parties in order to decide whether a mock balloting exercise

should be arranged. If the trial is likely to proceed there are clear benefits to the court and

parties if the procedure is tested. Where possible this will involve the sheriff who is likely to

preside over the jury trial and the relevant clerk of court. Parties will be invited to attend and

observe. Mock jurors will attend at the RJC with parties/other interested parties attending at

Court 15 ESC.

Mhairi M Stephen

Mhairi M Stephen QC

Sheriff Principal Lothian & Borders

7 May 2021

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ANNEX A

Coronavirus (Scotland) Act 2020 Schedule 4 direction to enable jurors to attend by

electronic means

Example interlocutor style:

The Sheriff, on the unopposed motions of the pursuer and defenders, approves the

proposed issue and proposed counter issue nos.[NUMBER] and [NUMBER] of process

and appoints them as now authenticated to be the issue and counter issue in the trial of

the cause previously assigned for xx by interlocutor dated xx; appoints the said issues to

be tried by a jury; authorises and appoints a jury to be summoned for that purpose in

common form; grants diligence for citing witnesses and havers; in terms of Schedule 4

paragraph 2(3) of the Coronavirus (Scotland) Act 2020, being satisfied that it will not

prejudice proceedings or be contrary to the interests of justice, directs that jurors attend

by electronic means via TV link between the courtroom and the Remote Jury Cent re,

Edinburgh; appoints the cause to call By Order on [before citation and before trial].

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ANNEX B AMENDED CIVIL JUROR CITATION

You have been selected for Jury Service

Your name was randomly selected from the electoral register

You may be required to attend over several days

If you are over 71, you have a right to be excused from Jury Service. If you

wish to be excused please see the excusal section overleaf

If you have any special access or support requirements you should

contact us as soon as possible. Please consult the Guide to Jury Service

(See overleaf)

If you fail to attend you may be liable to a fine of up to £1,000

You are cited to attend personally on the date and at the time and place stated

above, and on such succeeding days as may be necessary to serve, if required, as a juror. If you fail to attend, you will be liable to the penalty prescribed by Law.

PLEASE TURN OVER FOR IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT JURY SERVICE

Sheriff Clerk

Citation Number: 01 To: [NAME] [Address Line 1] [Address line 2] [Postcode] [Postcode] Name of case: [Insert Name] Place: SCTS Jury Centre Date: [Insert Date] Odeon Cinema Complex Time: 09:30 118 Lothian Road Enquiries: 0131 225 2525 (option 5 then 2)

Edinburgh Excusals: nationalpicourt@scotcourts.gov.uk EH3 8BQ

PLEASE BRING THIS CITATION WITH YOU WHEN YOU ATTEND

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WHAT I SHOULD DO NOW

Due to changes in our jury citation and selection process due to COVID-19, please read and carefully follow the instructions below:

RESPOND to the jury citation within 7 days. Please respond as soon as possible,

even if seeking excusal. If you fail to respond you may receive a reminder letter.

You can respond by:

Emailing nationalpicourt@scotcourts.gov.uk or telephoning 0131 225 2525 (option 5 then 2)

Please provide your full name, citation number and the date you are cited to attend court, all of this information is found on the front page of your jury citation.

Please provide at least one contact telephone number and an email address (if possible).

Information about measures to ensure your safety during the COVID-19 pandemic

Enclosed is a leaflet “Your Safety Is Our Priority” outlining the measures SCTS has

put in place that ensures the safety of those attending for jury trials, and what is expected of you. Please read this carefully.

Also enclosed is a Jury Service Information Sheet. This sets out what you should expect when you attend for jury service. It describes the new processes we have adopted when selecting a jury and the action we have taken to accommodate physical distancing requirements set down by public health guidance. Please also read this carefully.

When do I attend? After 5pm on the day before you have been cited for jury service, you should

telephone the jurors attendance update line. It is important that you do this, you

will hear a recorded message which will give you up to date information regarding your attendance.

JURORS ATTENDANCE UPDATE LINE: 0300 790 0008

If you are unable to contact the update line, you must contact 0131 225 2525 (option 5

then 2) at 09:00am the next working day.

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Excusal from jury service

If you wish to apply for exemption or excusal from jury service, please read both the

‘Guide to Eligibility and Excusal’ at www.scotcourts.gov.uk/coming-to-

court/jurors and the juror section in the enclosed leaflet “Your Safety Is Our Priority”.

If you fall within one of the categories noted in the guide or excusal section of the

leaflet, please email us at nationalpicourt@scotcourts.gov.uk Please provide a

supporting document as to why you are seeking excusal, some examples are: a

doctor’s letter, holiday booking confirmation or a letter from your employer. Please

also include your full name, citation number and the date you are cited to attend

court, all of this information is found on the front page of your jury citation. Please

note at this time we are not able to accept postal applications for excusal.

Photographs from your phone or scanned documents will be accepted as evidence

for excusal where requests are made by email.

READ the following guidance leaflets carefully before attending court:

Guide to Jury Service

Guide to Jury Service Eligibility & Applying for Excusal

Guide to applying for Expenses for Jury Service

Jury Expenses Claim Form

Jury Service Certificate of Loss of Earnings

Thank you for contributing to jury service in Scotland

These can be found at www.scotcourts.gov.uk/coming-to-court/jurors. If you do not have access to the internet, please let us know by calling 0131 225 2525 (option 5 then 2) and we will arrange for the documents to be sent to you.

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JURY SERVICE - INFORMATION SHEET FOR CIVIL JURY TRIALS

This is an information sheet for jurors who have been cited for jury service on a civil jury trial. It sets out what additional steps Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) has taken to ensure your safety. 1. Jury Service You have been cited to attend at an SCTS Jury Centre. A jury centre is a facility that allows SCTS to provide accommodation for jurors, which is both comfortable and at which we can ensure physical distancing. Using state of the art secure audio-visual technology, the Jury Centre will link directly to the courtroom, allowing jurors to see and hear proceedings. In the courtroom a live image of the jurors will be shown. There will be the ability for the jury to communicate with the courtroom. SCTS staff will be on site to support jurors at the Jury Centre throughout their service. 2. Jurors Attendance Update line After 5pm the day before you have been cited to attend, you should call the jurors attendance update line number. The number is on your jury citation. It is important that you call this number as it will provide you with up to date information about your jury service. You may be asked to call the jurors attendance update number several times throughout the week, so you should listen carefully to the message. 3. The Ballot Procedure The ballot is the approach the Court must take to choose a jury for trial. We have developed a new procedure which means jurors will be balloted at the Jury Centre. The ballot will take place on the day that you have been cited for. It is important that you arrive at the Jury Centre at the time stated on your citation. If for any reason you think your name should not be entered into the ballot, please let the jury minder at the Jury Centre know. The jury minder will contact the clerk of court and you will be asked to have a conversation with the clerk of court, in private, to discuss the reason why you think your name should not be entered into the ballot. The clerk of court will carefully consider the reason you give and will advise you whether you can be excused or not. For further information on applying for excusal or exemption from jury service, please read the ‘Guide to Jury Service – Eligibility and Applying for Excusal’ document on the SCTS website and the ‘Jury Trials – Your Safety is our Priority’ leaflet. The ballot will be conducted by the clerk of court before the judge/sheriff and counsel/solicitors for parties to the action. The clerk will select 12 names from the ballot bowl to be the jury and a further number of names to be substitute jurors, should they be required. If your name is selected in the ballot you should move to the seat assigned to your juror number in the jury room. During the selection of the jury, each party in the case may object to up to four selected jurors without giving a reason and may object to further selected jurors if an assigned reason is given. Objections may be made for many reasons; for instance, to keep a balance between male and female jurors, or to ensure that various age groups are represented. You should not be worried or offended if your name is objected to.

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4. SCTS Jury Centre In line with Government guidance and following detailed risk assessments, we have implemented a number of safety controls at the Jury Centre. We have introduced measures in all areas, putting in place arrangements to maintain

physical distancing. The measures include:

Sanitising stations placed at entry/exit points.

Systems to manage the flow of people, such as floor and wall markings, public

seating marked for use or sealed off/ removed.

Advising those entering or leaving the jury room to avoid cross-traffic.

In addition to floor markings, posters are in place throughout the Jury Centre reminding all jurors and SCTS staff of the need to observe physical distancing and to wash hands thoroughly and regularly. Robust and frequent cleaning measures are in place to ensure the Jury Centre is clean throughout the day. The Jury Centre ventilation systems use air handling units to extract stale air and replace with a supply of clean, fresh and filtered air. 5. On Arrival Upon arrival at the Jury Centre you will be asked to observe the following:

To keep physically distanced, in line with current government guidelines,

between yourself and others while queuing and on entering the building.

A security officer or a member of SCTS staff will invite you to enter the building

when appropriate to ensure physical distancing is adhered to. You will be asked

to confirm that you do not have any symptoms of coronavirus - such as a high

temperature, fever, continuous cough or a loss of taste or smell. Unless exempt

you will be required to wear a face covering at all times when moving around the

building. You may continue to wear a face covering while seated in the jury

room unless the Court requests you to remove it. You will be given a face

covering if you do not have one. You can also wear your own face coverings.

Our security officers will carry out a “hands off” bag search, maintaining a safe

distance. You will need to open your bag and place items in a tray, so that

security officers can check you are not carrying any items that are not allowed in

the building. You may be asked to empty the items in a tray and step back.

Once you have passed through security you will be directed to the main reception where a member of staff will direct or escort you to the appropriate room. You will be asked to turn off your mobile phone prior to entering the room. 6. The Trial As a member of the jury you will view the trial from a location separate to the courtroom. Each juror has an allocated seat and you must stay in this seat for court purposes. If you develop symptoms of coronavirus during the trial, you must alert a member of SCTS

staff immediately. You will then be excused. With physical distancing in place, other jurors

will not need to self-isolate and the trial will continue.

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All documents that are given to you during the trial will be passed to you by a member of

staff who will be wearing gloves. Where jurors are provided with a document, we ask that

they do not share them.

7. Personal Protective Equipment You are required to wear a face covering while moving around the building unless you are exempt. You can bring your own face covering should you wish. We will provide you with suitable face coverings if you do not have your own. You may be asked to remove your face covering during the trial while seated in the jury room. Hand sanitiser will be available for you to use. You can bring your own if you wish. 8. Lunches We will provide you with a lunch each day that you attend. This will be in the form of a packed lunch, which will have been freshly prepared and delivered to the room in which you will have your lunch. If you have any dietary requirements please inform us when you respond to your jury citation by email or telephone using the contact details provided on your citation. 9. Travel Expenses If you are concerned about the mode of transport that you will use to attend for jury service you should advise us when you respond to your jury citation by email or telephone using the contact details provided on your citation.

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Annex C

Civil Jury Trial - Empanelling and Preliminary Procedure

1. All cited jurors who are not excused to attend at the RJC at Lothian Road on

the first day of the scheduled civil jury trial. Arrival time to be 9.30 am.

2. Jurors to be checked in by Reception staff using the list of assize and directed

to Screen 1 (maximum capacity with distancing – 36 taking account of

architect plans and loss of seats due to tech set-up).

3. On entry to Screen 1, Jurors are to be directed to socially distanced seating

as detailed in the architect plan – copy of the plan to be held at RJC to ensure

correct allocation of seating. Unempanelled Jurors should not be seated in

any of the 12 allocated juror seats.

4. Designated Juror seat numbers 1 to 12 to be left vacant. Juror packs to be

handed to jurors after ballot by Jury attendant. Juror pack to contain: Issue;

any counter issue, contact details form, plain paper, pens.

5. Jury attendant to advise clerk of court by phone when all potential jurors are in

attendance and advise of any absentees so that the clerk can update their list

of assize.

6. The Overview camera will show a broad view of the screen. It will not be

possible to see individual jurors on this view – some will be seated behind the

camera and others will be too far away from the camera to be clearly in view.

7. Clerk of court to deliver jury speech from the courtroom to Screen 1 via the

audio/visual link. Note: Individual Jurors will not be clearly visible to the

court at this time.

8. Clerk to advise jurors to raise their hand if they wish to request excusal and

not discuss the reasons with any of the other potential jurors.

9. Jury attendant to escort those seeking excusal one by one out of screen 1 to

speak to the clerk of court by telephone as appropriate.

10. Clerk of court may need to instruct those seeking excusal to return to their

seat until a decision is made re: their request – if so jury attendant to escort

them back to their seat in the screen room or, where they are excused they

will be directed to the exit.

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11. Once excusal decision is made clerk to advise, via the telephone, any jurors

asked to return to Screen 1 pending decision. Jury attendant to direct any

excused jurors to the exit.

12. Day 1 lunches comprise a variety of choice to cater across most dietary

needs. If any juror advises of any exceptional dietary requirement, a request

will require to be made with the ESC kitchen. This will then be transported to

the RJC.

13. Clerk of court to prepare the ballot bowl using those jurors remaining – jurors

to be advised what is happening and videolink disconnected at this time. If

the court requires to deal with any preliminary matters clerk of court to

disconnect and connect the link as appropriate keeping the jurors informed re:

any delays.

14. Clerk of court to proceed to ballot when the court is ready, initiating the

audio/visual link at the appropriate time and selecting 12 jurors by drawing

slips from the ballot bowl in turn and calling out the citation number and name

on the slip.

15. Jury attendant to direct each juror whose name is called to seats 1-12 in

order. Once they take their numbered seat the juror will become clearly

visible on screen in the court.

16. Any peremptory challenge to be indicated when the juror takes their seat by

agent/counsel saying ‘need not serve’ or similar and the clerk of court then

saying to the person challenged ‘NAME, you need not serve as a juror. You

may leave the court’.

17. Where a peremptory challenge is made the numbered seat to be wiped down

before a replacement juror is balloted.

18. Once 12 jury members have been balloted, clerk of court to read out the issue

(and any counter-issue) and ask jurors if they have any personal interest to

declare.

19. In the event of a personal interest being declared it may be necessary to

excuse that juror and select another. Any excused juror to be asked to leave

the court and their numbered seat to be wiped down by the jury

attendant/RJC staff.

20. Clerk to administer oath/affirmation.

21. Sheriff to address jury on impartiality in Jury Introduction. See Annex C.

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22. ‘Hats and coats’ adjournment - any juror for whom an impartiality issue has

arisen to indicate to the jury attendant that they require to speak to the clerk of

court. Jury attendant to escort those seeking excusal one by one out of

screen 1 to speak to clerk of court via telephone as appropriate.

23. Court to reconvene and substitute any juror as required by drawing

replacement name from ballot bowl. Numbered jury seat to be wiped down

and jury pack to be replaced by jury attendant if any substitute is required.

24. Sheriff to thank and excuse the unempanelled jurors, RJC staff to show them

out.

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Annex D

SPECIMEN DRAFT – JURY INTRODUCTION Part A

Ladies and Gentlemen, You have been selected to serve on this jury. I am going to explain a little about it

and when I have done so the court will adjourn for a short time so that you can make

yourselves comfortable before the trial begins. When we return I will tell you more

about the procedure which we will follow.

In the meantime, I’m going to give you some information and ask you to think about

what I say.

The case involves an accident in which... .

The events with which we’re going to be concerned happened at... .

And the date of the accident was... .

The pursuers names are... .

He/she/they is/are... .

The defenders are... .

They are the employers of... .

What I would like you to think about is whether there is any good reason, in the light

of what I’ve said, why you would not be able to fulfil your roles as jurors in this trial

impartially. If you know any of these people I have been mentioning, or if you know

something about the case given the details which I have drawn to your attention,

such as to suggest to you that you may know something about the content of the

evidence which we are about to be hearing in relation to the accident, or if there is

some other good reason why you feel you could not be an impartial member of the

jury, would you please ask to speak to the Clerk of Court after we have adjourned,

which as I have indicated will happen shortly. Please don’t discuss your knowledge

or concerns with anyone else; simply tell the jury attendant in the court room with

you that you wish to speak to the Clerk of Court and he/she will report to me.

Thereafter the court will deal with the matter appropriately.

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Before I adjourn, may I speak to those members of the public cited for jury services

who are present in court but have not been selected to serve on this jury. I am not

yet in a position to release you, but I expect to be able to make the position clear

when the court reconvenes, which I hope will be in 10 or 15 minutes time. So can I

ask for your patience please and ask also that you remain in the court room until the

court reconvenes.

On reconvening the court

I am speaking again to the members of the public who were asked to attend for jury

service this morning but have not been selected to serve on this jury. Thank you for

your patience. I am pleased to tell you that we are ready to proceed and so it

remains for me to thank you for your attendance this morning. You have fulfilled an

important public duty by attending even though you have not been selected. I

appreciate it will have been inconvenient for you, but as I am sure you will

understand, it is an essential part of the administration of justice that potential jurors

such as yourselves, should make themselves available when required. So I thank

you for your attendance and confirm that you are now free to leave the court if you

wish.

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Annex E

JURY INTRODUCTION – SPECIMEN COVID RELATED REMARKS

First of all, can I assure you that I recognise that there may be a level of anxiety in

having to perform jury service while the coronavirus remains at large in the

community. I acknowledge that and very much appreciate your coming to perform

your public duty as a jury in these circumstances.

Please be assured that your health and wellbeing are a priority. You have already

been made aware of the arrangements in place to protect your safety during this

trial. If you have any concerns at any stage please speak to the jury attendant or, if

necessary, the clerk.

I will now move on to give you some information on the trial, your role and the role of

others in the trial and the fundamental legal principles which apply.