Rapp v. Fowler
- Lewis Kaplan
- 1:20-cv-09586
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
In Rapp v. Fowler, Judge Kaplan denied a written juror-questionnaire request but allowed counsel to suggest follow-up questions after court-led questioning.
The parties, their attorneys, and prospective jurors involved in jury selection for the case.
What happened
In Rapp v. Fowler, the parties jointly proposed a written questionnaire for prospective jurors and asked the court to allow follow-up questioning based on jurors’ answers.
Judge Kaplan said he would question prospective jurors himself, as he does in all cases, while considering the parties’ joint questionnaire when preparing his questions.
The court denied the request for prospective jurors to complete a written questionnaire. Judge Lewis A. Kaplan said the parties’ lawyers would have an adequate opportunity to suggest additional questions after the court’s questioning, and he would ask any additional questions he considered proper.
The detailed version
- Rapp v. Fowler · No. 1:20-cv-09586
- Lewis Kaplan
- Sept. 7, 2022
Background
The parties submitted a joint proposed questionnaire for prospective jurors. They also asked that follow-up questioning be allowed when necessary based on jurors’ responses.
Rule and analysis
The court cited Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 47(a), which allows the court to question prospective jurors itself and requires the court to permit additional questioning by the parties’ attorneys when the court considers it proper. Judge Kaplan stated that the court would conduct the questioning, as it does in all cases, and would consider the parties’ joint questionnaire when preparing its own examination.
Ruling
The court denied the request that prospective jurors complete a written questionnaire. It explained, among other reasons, that jurors may understand written questions differently from the people who drafted them, creating difficulty in interpreting their responses. After the court’s examination, counsel would have an adequate opportunity to suggest additional questions, and the court could ask any additional questions it considered proper. The order was signed by Lewis A. Kaplan, United States District Judge.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.