Roughly six months ago I was hired to be part of a shadow jury on a very high stakes payout legal case that lasted roughly two months. I’ve noticed that when it comes to media, shadow juries are often portrayed somewhat unrealistically to the point of being goofy.
A shadow jury is a group of (up to) twelve people who are selected by a company, usually the type of company that puts together focus groups, to be present in the gallery of the court room for the entire duration of a case. They are there to hear and witness everything the actual jury does. They are expected to pay attention and take notes the same way a real juror would. In every way they are meant to behave like a real juror.
They are chosen based on their demographic breakdown: race, age, M/F/other, educational background, career, political leanings etc… in an attempt to have a group of people who as closely as possible resemble the exact same people who are in the actual jury.
The difference of course is that they are not, in fact, the actual jury. Each day at the end of the proceedings they are taken to another location where staff at the company in charge take them aside one by one and grill them on their opinions about everything they heard that day, in order to try and get a feel for what the actual jurors might be thinking. This information is reported back to the legal team that has hired them so that they can strategize on what they might be doing right or wrong, and potentially change tactics in court as they move forward.
There are a lot more intricacies to the process, but that’s the general idea.
I am happy to be asked anything, but please know that I signed an NDA so there is a lot I *CANNOT* answer: in particular, any information which might let you know exactly what case I was working on. So for instance you could ask “what was the case about” and I could tell you in general terms, but I can’t be specific or even give you specifics enough that you might dig in there and figure it out for yourself.
It was an interesting and exhausting process that to be frank I’m not sure I would ever repeat, though the odds I would be recruited to do it again are probably slim and would rely on me again being a match for someone on an actual jury. Ask away!
Comments
how much u make?
How did you get chosen? Did you have any moral qualms about it, especially around the assumption that only big companies will be able to hire shadow juries (and this sounds like a payout to a smaller entity/individual?)
Did you sit with the regular “audience” (not sure what to call them) or in a specified area? Did the regular jury and everyone else know what you were doing or did you just seem like someone there to watch?
Thanks for sharing this fascinating insight! i can only imagine how intense and exhausting those two months were. Your explanation really clears up the mystery around shadow juries and shows how important your role was in helping the legal team understand the real jury’s perspective. It’s impressive you stayed focused and committed every day.
Did the hiring firm take your shadow team all the way through deliberations and a mock verdict? If so, how did your decision compare with the real one, and were you surprised by that outcome?
If your opinion or mock verdict did agree with the official verdict, was there any differences that surprised you?
How physically attractive did you find the other members of the jury?
So, was it sort of like the show Bull?
During your mock deliberations, we’re there anyone’s views you found surprising or very frustrating?
Is there anything, looking back, that makes you sort of get why the jury chose opposite of what you all did?
Trial attorney here. Did your shadow jury deliberate at the conclusion of the case, and if so, did your judgment align with the actual jury’s judgment? Did you notice any changes in the trial attorney’s tactics based on your jury’s feedback?
Any disturbing behavior from the people analyzing your responses?
In your own personal opinion, do you think justice was served? And if you were on the actual jury who would you have sided with?
How did the experience change your perspective on the justice system in general? Did it make you more/less likely to be willing to be on a “real” jury in the future?