Vt. R. Civ. P. 51

As amended through May 6, 2024

Rule 51 - Argument of Counsel; Instructions to Jury

(a) Time for Argument. More than one hour on a side will not be allowed for argument to the jury, without leave granted before argument; and the court may limit argument to a less time.

(b) Instructions to Jury; Objections. At the close of the evidence or at such earlier time during the trial as the court reasonably directs, any party may file written requests that the court instruct the jury on the law as set forth in the requests. Prior to the parties' arguments to the jury, the court must provide them with a copy of its proposed jury instructions and include a copy in the record, inform them of its action upon any requests, and give them the opportunity to state any objections to the proposed instructions on the record out of the hearing of the jury. The court, at its election, may instruct the jury before or after argument, or both. No party may assign as error the giving or the failure to give an instruction unless that party objects thereto either at a charge conference or before the jury retires to consider its verdict, stating distinctly the matter objected to and the grounds of the objection. An objection made at a charge conference to an instruction proposed by the court need not be repeated to be preserved. If any portion of the charge read to the jury differs in substance from the last version approved by the court at the charge conference to which the party has objected in conformity with this rule, the party must object to that portion of the charge before the jury retires in order to preserve the objection. A written copy of the version to which the party has objected must be included in the record.

(c) Written Instructions. The instructions shall be given orally. The court may provide the jury with three or more written copies of the instructions to take to the jury room when the jury retires for deliberation.

V.R.C.P. 51

Amended Nov. 9, 1982, eff. 2/1/1983; 12/12/1985, eff. 4/1/1986; 12/9/1988, eff. 3/1/1989; Feb. 6, 2017, eff. 4/10/2017.

Reporter's Notes-2017 Amendment

Rule 51(b) is amended contemporaneously with an amendment of V.R.Cr.P. 30 to clarify that, in both civil and criminal trials, objections to proposed jury instructions fully articulated at a charge conference may be preserved without the necessity for their reassertion after the court's reading of the instructions and prior to the jury's retirement for deliberations.

To facilitate the process, the court is required to give the parties a copy of the proposed charge and to include a copy in the record, informing the parties of its action on any requested instructions. The parties may then make objections to the instructions on the record at the charge conference or otherwise before the jury retires.

The amendment does not obviate the need for fair and reasonable articulation of specific objections to jury instructions, asserted distinctly and stating the bases thereof. However, the amendment contemplates that where the record of an objection to a jury instruction is well developed, with distinct articulation at an earlier juncture in the case, a lengthy repetition of the specific objection and its bases is not required postcharge and predeliberation, provided that the instructions as actually given do not differ in substance from those approved by the court as a result of the charge conference.

The amendment does not require reassertion of objections to instructions given in the manner that it prescribes unless the court's instruction as given does not comport with the particular language of an instruction that has been indicated by the court in a precharge ruling, or the court has omitted a particular instruction to the jury altogether. Nor does the amended rule preclude assertion of an objection to an instruction, the basis for which is first presented in the court's instructions as actually stated to the jury. In such circumstances, preservation of the objection would require full articulation of a party's objection, distinctly stating the bases thereof, postcharge, and predeliberation, to provide the court with the opportunity to reasonably address any claim of error. A written copy of the version objected to must be included in the record.