court trial

A court trial, or a bench trial , refers to the type of trial that does not involve a jury but is conducted by the judge alone, in which the judge both decides the facts of the case and applies the law .

Compare: jury trial .

In the United States, trial by jury is a constitutional right under the Sixth Amendment . In the federal court system, if a defendant is entitled to a jury trial, the trial must be conducted by a jury unless (1) the defendant waives the jury trial in writing, (2) the government agrees, and (3) the court approves. In each state , the circumstances in which court trials apply vary by jurisdiction .

[Last reviewed in July of 2022 by the Wex Definitions Team ]

Wex

• ACADEMIC TOPICS
• trial process/advocacy
• THE LEGAL PROCESS
• courts
• criminal law
• criminal procedure
• judicial administration
• legal practice/ethics
• wex definitions
• civil procedure
• courts and procedure