a. When an action is called for trial by jury, the jury panel shall be assembled. Voir dire may be conducted by the court and the parties as the judge may allow, by case-specific written questionnaire, orally, or by both methods. Case-specific written questionnaires may be administered before potential jurors are summoned to the court. If used, case-specific written questionnaires shall be administered in a manner and form used by the court in compliance with Arizona Rules of Civil Procedure 47(c)(3). Failure to submit written voir dire questions a day before the panel is assembled, or by a date ordered by the court, waives the right to submit questions. The party challenging a juror for cause has the burden to establish by a preponderance of the evidence that the juror cannot render a fair and impartial verdict. After challenges for cause are exercised, a panel of seven jurors in justice court or nine jurors in superior court shall be assembled. One of the jurors shall be selected as the alternate after the evidence is presented and before deliberations.b. Immediately after the jury is sworn, the court shall instruct the jury concerning its duties, its conduct, the order of proceedings, and the elementary legal principles that will govern the proceeding. At least one day prior to the commencement of a jury trial, any party may file written requests that the court instruct the jury on the law as set forth in the requests. A party shall be deemed to have waived request for other instructions except those that could not reasonably have been anticipated prior to trial.c. The order of trial shall be as follows: The plaintiff or the plaintiff's counsel may read the complaint to the jury and make a statement of the case; the defendant or the defendant's counsel may read the answer and counterclaim, if any, and may make a statement of the case to the jury, but may defer making such statement until after the close of the evidence on behalf of the plaintiff; the plaintiff shall then introduce evidence; the defendant shall then introduce evidence; the plaintiff may then introduce rebutting evidence; the defendant may then introduce rebutting evidence in support of any counterclaim(s). The parties then may make closing arguments in the same order.d. If the jurors are permitted to separate during the trial, they shall be admonished by the court that it is their duty not to converse with or permit themselves to be addressed by any person on any subject connected with the trial. When the jurors retire to deliberate, they shall be kept together in a convenient place, in the charge of a proper officer who shall not allow any communication to be made to them, or make any, except to ask them if they have agreed upon their verdict.Added Dec. 9, 2008, effective 1/1/2009; amended Dec. 8, 2021, effective 1/1/2022; amended August 29, 2022, effective 8/29/2022.