The Pennsylvania Supreme Court recently approved amendments to the commonwealth’s civil jury selection process, introducing significant changes to how jurors are selected in Philadelphia County. These changes include a mandate that judges directly oversee jury selection, which represents a critical shift from a long-standing practice of delegating much of the process to judicial staff.

Historically, tipstaff and other court personnel managed voir dire, ruling on strikes for cause and evaluating hardship claims and prospective jurors’ credibility with considerable autonomy. While litigants retained the option to involve the judge in disputes, this often occurred over the phone or in brief interventions, with judges rarely maintaining active involvement thereafter. Right or wrong, this system placed significant control over a pivotal component of the trial—the selection of those who would ultimately decide the case—in the hands of court staff rather than the trial judge.