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10th amendment

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9th amendment

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8th amendment

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7th amendment

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Amendment VII
In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.
The Seventh Amendment continues a practice from English common law of distinguishing civil claims which must be tried before a jury (absent waiver by the parties) from claims and issues that may be heard by a judge alone. It only governs federal civil courts and has no application to civil courts set up by the states when those courts are hearing only disputes of state law .

To many Americans, jury trials seem to be the normal way of deciding civil cases. Television programs and movies show exciting scenes of juries deciding important non-criminal disputes involving individuals, government officials, and companies.

The reality is different. Juries decide less than one percent of the civil cases that are filed in court. This lack of jury trials may seem strange, as the Seventh Amendment guarantees the right to jury trial in certain civil cases.

There are two main types of court systems in the United States: federal and state. The Seventh Amendment requires civil jury trials only in federal courts. This Amendment is unusual. The U.S. Supreme Court has required states to protect almost every other right in the Bill of Rights, such as the right to criminal jury trial, but the Court has not required states to hold civil jury trials. Minneapolis & St. Louis Railroad Co. v. Bombolis (1916). Nearly all of the states, however, have rights to civil jury trial in certain cases in their state constitutions.

The United States is almost the only nation that continues to require civil jury trials. Civil juries similar to those in the United States are not part of the legal traditions of the Continent of Europe or the legal systems derived from those traditions, including in Latin America and Asia. Even in England and its former colonies of Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, civil jury trial has virtually been abolished.

Why did some persons at the founding of the United States think that civil jury trial was so important that it should be guaranteed in the federal and state constitutions? To understand the Seventh Amendment, we need to go back into history and the English legal system. Much of the legal system in the United States, and especially the provisions of the Bill of Rights, are based on America's English roots.

The civil jury was an old English institution, older even than the criminal jury. Since the middle ages, the English had used juries of persons not trained in law to decide certain civil cases. There were always some English courts that did not use juries. In these courts, judges decided cases. The most important of these juryless courts was Chancery, also known as Equity.

In the eighteenth century, as the desire of American colonists for independence from Britain grew, the jury in America became more important. The British government claimed that Americans had to obey laws enacted by the British Parliament, in which Americans had no representation. Americans did participate on colonial juries, and these juries became a way for Americans to govern themselves. As tensions with Britain rose, juries nullified (refused to follow) hated British laws, especially laws for collecting taxes. Because colonial juries had been valuable in the struggle against Britain, Americans put rights to civil and criminal jury trial into their new state constitutions immediately after declaring independence in 1776.

By the time the federal Constitutional Convention met in Philadelphia in 1787, opinions about the civil jury were more mixed. Because state civil juries had been sympathetic to debtors, Federalists in particular feared nullification of the laws of contract. For this and other reasons, the federal Constitution that was presented to the states for ratification did not include a right to civil jury trial.

In the state ratifying conventions for the federal Constitution, Anti-Federalists strongly protested the lack of a right to civil jury trial. They expressed concerns about debtors, and also argued that juries could protect litigants from bad laws passed by the legislature, tyrannical actions by the executive, and corrupt or biased judges. Fearing that a second constitutional convention might be called if a right to civil jury trial were not included in a federal Bill of Rights, James Madison drafted what became the Seventh Amendment.

The Seventh Amendment has two clauses. The first, known as the Preservation Clause, provides: "In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved." This clause sets out the types of cases juries are required to decide. The second clause, known as the Re-examination Clause, declares: "no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law." This clause prevents federal judges from overturning jury verdicts in certain ways.

The term "common law," used twice in the Amendment, can be confusing. Today, the term "common law" often means law declared by judges, as opposed to law enacted by legislatures. In the Seventh Amendment, the term "common law" means the law and procedure of the courts that used juries, as opposed to Equity and other courts that did not use juries.

In interpreting the Seventh Amendment, judges soon encountered a problem. To which "common law" courts was the Amendment referring? The states had different civil jury practices, and the federal courts were new. The United States Supreme Court announced a solution. The term "common law" in the Seventh Amendment meant the common law of England. Parsons v. Bedford (1830). A century later, the Supreme Court formally declared that the Amendment was to be interpreted according to the common law of England at the time the Amendment was ratified, that is, in 1791. Dimick v. Schiedt (1935).

This interpretation is known as the historical test. Generally, the types of cases that juries decide and the ways that judges can review their verdicts are supposed to resemble the practice in English common law courts in 1791. The Supreme Court has stated that the Amendment preserves the "substance" of the right, not "mere matters of form or procedure." Baltimore & Carolina Line, Inc. v. Redman (1935). Departures from the English practice in 1791 have been permitted, including using six jurors instead of twelve. Colgrove v. Battin (1973).

A Guide to the Seventh Amendment

The Seventh Amendment, or Amendment VII of the United States Constitution is the section of the Bill of Rights that guarantees a jury trial for civil cases in the federal courts. However, this type of case is usually not heard anymore in the federal court system. The Seventh Amendment was introduced as a part of the Bill of Rights into the United States Constitution on September 5, 1789 and was voted for by 9 out of 12 states on December 15, 1791.

Understanding the Seventh Amendment Line by Line

If you are confused by what each line means, here are some good explanations to make the Seventh Amendment easier to understand:

"In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved": When the Seventh Amendment was written in the 1700s, $20 was considered a lot of money. Today, any disputes that involve amounts less than $75000 will not be handled in a federal court.

"And no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law": It is against United States law to setting up your own court system. If a person goes to court, he will always go to a court recognized by the government. These courts are often city, country, state, or national courts.

History of the Seventh Amendment

Before 1688, English judges were servants under the King of England. These judges were often biased towards the King, and because of this, their rulings were not always fair. During the Act of Settlement 1701, English judges won their independence from the king, but judges in the American colonies were still biased towards the king. King George III got rid of trials by juries in the Colonies, which made colonists very upset and fueled the fire that led to the American Revolution. When the Framers wrote the Bill of Rights, they understood how important it was to have a fair court system, so they made sure that the right to have a trial by jury was a fundamental law of the country.

Facts about the Seventh Amendment

*The Seventh Amendment was put into the Bill of Rights by James Madison

*The $20 dollar clause of the Seventh Amendment is one of the very few portions of the Bill of Rights that were not
incorporated by the Supreme Court.

From Ducksters:
The Seventh Amendment was part of the Bill of Rights that was added to the Constitution on December 15, 1791. This amendment protects the right to a trial by jury in civil court cases. From the Constitution Here is the text of the Seventh Amendment from the Constitution: "In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law." Why was this amendment added? The writers of the Bill of Rights wanted to make sure that the government would not do away with a trial by jury. They were concerned that if trials were only decided by judges, the judges would side with the government, giving the government too much power. This happened to the colonists when judges, who were appointed by the king, would always side with the king. They felt a jury of local people would be more likely to provide a fair trial. Civil Cases This amendment refers to non-criminal cases called civil cases. Criminal cases are cases where the government charges someone with a crime such as murder or robbery. If convicted, the person may go to jail or be fined by the court. Civil cases involve disputes between two private citizens or organizations. The victim in a civil case usually sues for "damages" in the form of money. Examples of civil cases include: People suing for damages due to faulty products. They may have been injured and want payment for their medical bills and lost wages. To settle an argument over who owns a plot of land. A business suing another business to get money they owe. Workers who sue their employers for unsafe working conditions. Discrimination lawsuits. To determine damages and who was at fault in a car accident.
Trial by Jury:
A trial by jury is when a number of people hear the case and decide together if the defendant is guilty. The amendment doesn't say exactly how many people need to be on a jury. The Supreme Court, however, has said that there needs to be at least six people on a jury. Most juries today in the United States have twelve members.

Twenty Dollars?
The amendment states that the lawsuit must be for more than twenty dollars. This was a lot more money in 1791 than it is today. Back then, it was more than a month's wages for the average worker. Today (2014), a dispute must be for over $75,000 to be heard by a federal court.

Interesting Facts about the Seventh Amendment
It is sometimes referred to as Amendment VII. It does not guarantee a trial by jury in cases brought against the government. In civil cases, the person suing is called the "plaintiff." To win a civil case, the plaintiff must bring a "preponderance of evidence" to prove their case. This is actually a lower standard of proof than in a criminal case where they must prove their case "beyond a reasonable doubt."

Lesson 42: 7th Amendment

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Part IV: Lesson 42: 7th Amendment - CWP: Government 2016-2017

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In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.

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6th amendment

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5th amendment

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3rd Amendment