Which amendment relates to the right to a jury trial in civil suits?

• A. Amendment 7
• B. Amendment 9
• C. Amendment 5
• D. Amendment 3

Answer: (C)

The right to a jury trial in civil cases is protected by the Seventh Amendment. It guarantees that in federal courts, those bringing or defending civil claims—where the case involves what historically were tried as a common-law dispute and the amount in controversy is at least twenty dollars—can have a jury decide the facts. The amendment also limits reexamination of those facts by judges, stating that cannot be done except as the common law allows. The other amendments listed cover different protections (for example, the Third deals with quartering soldiers, the Fifth with due process and self-incrimination, and the Ninth with rights retained by the people), so they don’t establish the civil jury-trial right the way the Seventh Amendment does.