Appeals Court: Lawyers May Have 1st A Right to Post-trial Jury Interviews

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The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit this week ruled in Sam Clyma v. Sunoco, Inc. (Case No. 08-5153) that attorneys may have the right, under the 1st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, to interview jurors in trials in which the attorneys were not involved.

The Oklahoma Employment Lawyers Association ("OELA") sought permission to interview jurors from a three-year-old Americans with Disabilities Act job bias trial.  The case was tried in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma where a court rule forbids attorneys from interviewing jurors without first obtaining permission from the court.

The 10th Circuit opinion suggests that if attorneys have such a 1st Amendment right to speak to the jurors, it is only to the extent that the lawyers' underlying purpose is to educate a segment of the bar.