Rule 2-512.Jury selection

Circuit Court · Last amended July 1, 2026 · Last verified July 13, 2026

This rule prints two full, separately-dated versions in the official compilation (a pending-amendment straddle); both are shown below.

In one sentenceLays out the mechanics of picking a civil jury in Maryland — the array, the jury list, voir dire, challenges for cause, peremptory strikes, and swearing in the panel.

Full Text of Rule 2-512

Text sizeEffective until July 1, 2026 — jump to: (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f) (g)

Effective July 1, 2026 — jump to: (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f) (g)

Rule 2-512. Jury selection — Effective until July 1, 2026

(a) Jury size and challenge to the array. —

(1) Size. — Before a trial begins, the judge shall decide (A) the required number of sworn jurors, including any alternates, and (B) the size of the array of qualified jurors needed.

(2) Insufficient Array. — If the array is insufficient for jury selection, the trial judge may direct that additional qualified jurors be summoned at random from the qualified juror pool as provided by statute.

(3) Challenge to the Array. — A party may challenge the array on the ground that its members were not selected or summoned according to law, or on any other ground that would disqualify the array as a whole. A challenge to the array shall be made and determined before any individual member of the array is examined, except that the trial judge for good cause may permit the challenge to be made after the jury is sworn but before any evidence is received.

(b) General requirements. — All individuals to be impanelled on the jury, including any alternates, shall be selected in the same manner, have the same qualifications, and be subject to the same examination.

(1) Contents. — Before the examination of qualified jurors, each party shall be provided with a list that includes each juror’s name, address, age, sex, education, occupation, spouse’s occupation, and any other information required by the Rule. Unless the trial judge orders otherwise, the address shall be limited to the city or town and zip code and shall not include the street address or box number.

(2) Dissemination. —

(A) Allowed. — A party may provide the jury list to any person employed by the party to assist in jury selection. With permission of the trial judge, the list may be disseminated to other individuals such as the courtroom clerk or court reporter for use in carrying out official duties.

(B) Prohibited. — Unless the trial judge orders otherwise, a party and any other person to whom the jury list is provided in accordance with subsection (c) (2) (A) of this Rule may not disseminate the list or the information contained on the list to any other person.

(3) Not Part of the Case Record; Exception. — Unless the court orders otherwise, copies of jury lists shall be returned to the jury commissioner. Unless marked for identification and offered in evidence pursuant to Rule 2-516, a jury list is not part of the case record.

(d) Examination and challenges for cause. —

(1) Examination. — The trial judge may permit the parties to conduct an examination of qualified jurors or may conduct the examination after considering questions proposed by the parties. If the judge conducts the examination, the judge may permit the parties to supplement the examination by further inquiry or may submit to the jurors additional questions proposed by the parties. The jurors’ responses to any examination shall be under oath. On request of any party, the judge shall direct the clerk to call the roll of the array and to request each qualified juror to stand and be identified when called.

(2) Challenge for Cause. — A party may challenge an individual qualified juror for cause. A challenge for cause shall be made and determined before the jury is sworn, or thereafter for good cause shown.

(e) Peremptory challenges. —

(1) Designation of Qualified Jurors; Order of Selection. — Before the exercise of peremptory challenges, the trial judge shall designate those individuals on the jury list who remain qualified after examination. The number designated shall be sufficient to provide the required number of sworn jurors, including any alternates, after allowing for the exercise of peremptory challenges. The trial judge shall at the same time prescribe the order to be followed in selecting individuals from the list.

(2) Number; Exercise of Peremptory Challenges. — Each party is permitted four peremptory challenges plus one peremptory challenge for each group of three or less alternates to be impanelled. For purposes of this section, all plaintiffs shall be considered as a single party and all defendants shall be considered as a single party unless the trial judge determines that adverse or hostile interests between plaintiffs or between defendants justify allowing one or more of them the separate peremptory challenges available to a single party. The parties shall simultaneously exercise their peremptory challenges by striking names from a copy of the jury list.

(f) Impanelled jury. —

(1) Impanelling. — The individuals to be impanelled as sworn jurors, including any alternates, shall be called from the qualified jurors remaining on the jury list in the order previously designated by the trial judge and shall be sworn.

(2) Oath; Functions, Powers, Facilities, and Privileges. — All sworn jurors, including any alternates, shall take the same oath and, until discharged from jury service, have the same functions, powers, facilities, and privileges.

(3) Discharge of Jury Member. — At any time before the jury retires to consider its verdict, the trial judge may replace any jury member whom the trial judge finds to be unable or disqualified to perform jury service with an alternate in the order of selection set under subsection (e)(1). When the jury retires to consider its verdict, the trial judge shall discharge any remaining alternates who did not replace another jury member.

(g) Foreperson. — The trial judge shall designate a sworn juror as foreperson.

Rule 2-512. Jury selection — Effective July 1, 2026

(a) Jury size and challenge to the array. —

(1) Size. — Before a trial begins, the judge shall decide (A) the required number of sworn jurors, including any alternates, and (B) the size of the array of qualified jurors needed.

(2) Dissemination. —

(d) Examination and challenges for cause. —

(e) Peremptory challenges. —

(f) Impanelled jury. —

(g) Foreperson. — The trial judge shall designate a sworn juror as foreperson.

End

Amendment History

Effective until July 1, 2026

Amended May 4, 1988; Dec. 4, 2007, effective Jan. 1, 2008; June 6, 2016, effective July 1, 2016; June 20, 2017, effective August 1, 2017; November 19, 2019, effective January 1, 2020; amended June 29, 2020, effective August 1, 2020.

Effective July 1, 2026

Committee Note & Source

Effective until July 1, 2026

Cross references. See Code, Courts Article, § 8-421(b).

Cross references. See Rule 16-934 concerning petitions to permit or deny inspection of a case record.

Source. This Rule is derived as follows: Section (a) is derived in part from former Rules 754 a and 543 c and in part new. Section (b) is derived from former Rule 751 b and former Rule 543 b 3. Section (c) is new.

Section (d) is derived from former Rules 752, 754 b, and 543 d.

Section (e) is derived from former Rules 753 and 543 a 3 and 4.

Section (f) is new.

Section (g) is derived from former Rule 751 d.

Effective July 1, 2026

Cross references. See Code, Courts Article, § 8-421(b).

Cross references. See Rule 16-941 concerning petitions to permit or deny inspection of a case record.

Section (d) is derived from former Rules 752, 754 b, and 543 d.

Section (e) is derived from former Rules 753 and 543 a 3 and 4.

Section (f) is new.

Section (g) is derived from former Rule 751 d.

Plain-English Summary

Rule 2-512 walks through jury selection from start to finish. Before trial, the judge decides how many sworn jurors and alternates are needed and how large a pool (the "array") to summon; if the array turns out too small, more qualified jurors can be summoned at random. A party can challenge the whole array as improperly selected or summoned, but that challenge has to happen before any individual juror is questioned, absent good cause for a later challenge. Every juror who might be seated, including alternates, gets selected the same way, meets the same qualifications, and faces the same questioning. Before questioning starts, each party receives a jury list with each prospective juror's name, age, sex, education, occupation, spouse's occupation, and a limited address (city or town and zip code, not the street address, unless the judge orders otherwise). That list can go to people helping a party pick the jury, or to others like the courtroom clerk with the judge's permission, but it generally can't be passed around beyond that, and it isn't part of the case record unless it gets offered into evidence.

The judge decides whether the parties question jurors directly or the judge asks proposed questions instead, with jurors answering under oath either way. Any party can challenge an individual juror for cause, and that has to happen before the jury is sworn absent good cause shown later. Once questioning wraps up, the judge designates enough qualified jurors to fill the panel after peremptory strikes and sets the order for selecting from the list. Each party gets four peremptory challenges, plus one more for every group of up to three alternates being seated; all plaintiffs count as one party and all defendants count as one party unless the judge finds a genuine conflict of interest among them that justifies separate strikes. Jurors are then called and sworn in that set order, all sworn jurors and alternates share the same duties and privileges until discharged, and the judge can swap in an alternate for any juror found unable to continue right up until the jury retires to deliberate — at which point any leftover alternates get discharged. The judge designates one sworn juror as foreperson.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many peremptory challenges does each side get?

Four, plus one additional peremptory challenge for each group of up to three alternates being seated. All plaintiffs are treated as a single party and all defendants as a single party for this purpose, unless the trial judge finds their interests are adverse or hostile enough to justify giving one or more of them separate strikes.

Can I see personal information about the prospective jurors before selection?

Yes, within limits. The jury list includes each juror's name, age, sex, education, occupation, spouse's occupation, and a limited address — city or town and zip code, not the full street address, unless the judge orders otherwise.

Can I share the jury list with someone outside my legal team?

Only with the judge's permission. A party can give the list to people it employs to help with jury selection, and the judge can allow it to go to others, such as the courtroom clerk, for official purposes. Beyond that, the rule bars further dissemination unless the judge says otherwise.

Who decides whether the lawyers or the judge questions prospective jurors?

The trial judge does. The judge can let the parties conduct the questioning directly, or handle it personally using questions the parties propose — and even when the judge conducts it, the judge can still let the parties ask follow-up questions or submit additional written questions.

What happens if a sworn juror can't continue partway through trial?

The judge can replace that juror with an alternate, following the order of selection set before the panel was sworn, any time before the jury retires to deliberate. Once deliberations begin, any alternates who never stepped in are discharged.

Source & verification. Rule text, Committee Note, Source note, and amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Maryland Rules, adopted by the Supreme Court of Maryland. Last verified July 13, 2026. · Official source

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