What Is A Bench Trial In Family Court

The family court bench book fcbb provides guidance for magistrates who sit in the family court.

What is a bench trial in family court. The bench book retains a glossary to help with unfamiliar terms. Judges decide family cases on their own without a jury. The term applies most appropriately to any administrative hearing in relation to a summary offense to distinguish the type of trial.

A bench trial is a trial by judge as opposed to a trial by jury. A bench trial is a trial held before a judge sitting without a jury. Many legal systems roman islamic use bench trials for most or all cases or for certain types of cases while a jury renders a verdict a judge in a bench trial does the same by making a finding.

In a criminal proceeding in state court a defendant may face a jury trial or a bench trial. What is a bench trial. Finally it is set out in the order in which cases present themselves to the court.

With bench trials the judge plays the role of the jury as finder of fact in addition to making conclusions of law. The judge is the only official who presides over the case and can speak directly to both parties. The general provisions for a trial by bench are laid out in the federal rules of criminal procedure.

The family court bench book will continue to be supplemented by the family court reference cards which have been well received as a ready source of information in court. In a typical jury trial the jury serves as the trier of fact while the judge reviews questions of law and procedure in a bench trial however the judge serves as the trier of fact in addition to making procedural rulings and evaluating questions of law. A bench trial is a court trial in which two parties are brought before a judge to present their respective cases and evidence.

In this type of trial a jury is not present. Rule 23 evidence and trial tells you how to prepare for your trial and how to give your evidence. They make decisions using the family law rules and laws and the evidence you give.