The Problematic Issues of Jury Selection

Abstract

It is known that the jury is not an institutionally separate legal entity. It functions alongside the Court of First Instance and is a special form of administration of justice. Unlike ordinary proceedings when a judge makes a decision based on the law, a jury trial relies on the opinions of ordinary citizens applying to their "inner voice" - conscience, "common sense", folk wisdom and intelligence, public morality, sense of justice. That is why jury trial is considered the highest expression of democracy. It is an interesting institution in many ways. The article reviews the problematic issues of jury selection.
 The article analyses theoretical and practical aspects of selecting non-professional judges, the preconditions of their selection, recusals and the jury composition. Legislative changes have been evaluated positively, but there are still challenges. Accordingly, the problems associated with jury selection are identified and the specific recommendations are made to prevent the process from delaying and choose independent, unbiased jurors.