Senate Bill 408 (SB 408) is a non-partisan bill proposed to close the gap of equity and potential for abuse of authority by trial courts in Michigan and I am seeking your support for this necessary and important legislation. In 1788, Thomas Jefferson famously said: “I consider trial by jury as the only anchor ever yet imagined by man, by which a government can be held to the principles of its cons
titution.” Likewise, John Adams believed “[r]epresentative government and trial by jury are the heart and lungs of liberty”, while James Madison considered “[t]rial by jury in civil cases is as essential to secure the liberty of the people as any one of the pre-existent rights of nature”. Today, fewer civil cases make it through the litigation process to even be tried to a jury, but the ones that do are cases that should be decided by a jury. However, what happens when a sole trial court judge uses his or her own discretion (justly or unjustly) to set aside a civil jury verdict in Michigan? Under current law, even a trial judge who unjustly usurps the will of a jury cannot be challenged by right in the Court of Appeals until after a separate and subsequent trial is conducted before a new jury. Though it requires clear and convincing evidence of some impropriety, the highest standard in American civil jurisprudence, trial courts are aware a litigant has no right to appeal its decision until after a second trial. By this point, and after a likely appeal, the Court of Appeals will care less about how the case got to the Court of Appeals (i.e. the trial court improperly setting aside a jury verdict) and more concerned with what occurred at the second trial. In a case where a trial court improperly overturns a jury verdict, a concurrent right to appeal before any subsequent trial preserves the balance of power at the trial court (by imposing appellate judicial review) and potentially prevents an unnecessary second trial. Access to judicial scrutiny keeps the justice system honest and at the same time protects the purity of jury verdicts. This curative bill fixes the missing “checks and balances” of a trial court decision to vacate a civil jury verdict. The legislation works to reinforce the sanctity of civil jury verdicts and restore faith in the legal system to the ideals envisioned by the Founding Fathers of this great nation. SB 408 preserves the constitutional right to trial by jury; helps to ensure certainty in court decisions; minimizes the risk of bias in judicial proceedings; and ensures fairness for all parties in civil litigation.
