Juries and lay judges
Citizens can take part in criminal trials in different ways. In a jury trial, a group of citizens decides guilt on its own, apart from the judge. In a mixed panel, lay judges sit and decide together with professional judges. Some countries use neither, and leave everything to professional judges.
Updated October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
Do ordinary citizens help decide serious criminal trials?
Jury trials (citizens decide guilt) (19)
Mixed panels of lay and professional judges (19)
Citizen participation that advises the judge (1)
Professional judges only (20)
Read this before you quote the map
- Even in a country shown as 'jury', juries may hear only some serious crimes, and the accused may be able to waive the jury.
- In some countries the rules differ between regions, as in Switzerland and parts of Latin America, so those are not coloured.
- Some legal systems have changed over time, so the map shows the main current arrangement.
Sources
Cite this map
TheLawToKnow Tools. Legal World Maps: Juries and lay judges. https://tools.thelawtoknow.com/legal-world-maps/jury-or-lay-judges.
Put this map on your own site
Teachers and bloggers are welcome to embed it. Copy this code:
<iframe src="https://tools.thelawtoknow.com/legal-world-maps/embed/jury-or-lay-judges" title="Juries and lay judges" width="100%" height="720" style="border:0" loading="lazy"></iframe>
Other maps
Monarchy or republic?Federal or unitary?Who can strike down a law?One chamber or two?How is the government chosen and held to account?Separate administrative courts or one set of courts?One family law for all, or by community?Whose empire left its law behind?
