verdict legal definition

The conclusion of a jury, or  of a judge in a non-jury case, of what the facts are or were. A verdict, being a finding of fact, is different from a judgment or a judicial decision. The trial court may choose to accept or to disregard the verdict in determining judgment.

A verdict achieved by some juror giving in on one of his or her misgivings in exchange for another jurorÂ’s doing the same, in order to avoid a deadlock or extended period of deliberation. Such an exchange, although considered improper, happens often.

A verdict that simply declares which side wins, without finding any special facts to be true.

A verdict in a criminal case that finds the defendant guilty of some charges but innocent of others.

An improper verdict in a damage case, whereby the jurors find the arithmetic mean of what they think are appropriate damages; that is, the total of what each juror believes should be awarded, divided by the number of jurors to arrive at the amount of the award.

A jury verdict that sets forth findings on the merits of each factual issue posed by the court,  then used by the court in applying the law to the facts that were found to have merit. When applied in a criminal case, where the judge directs the jury to render special verdicts on specific charges in a case, such action has been declared to be unconstitutional, as the defendant is entitled to a general verdict.