California jury instructions are the legal directions a judge gives a jury before it deliberates, telling jurors exactly what the law requires them to decide. The Judicial Council of California publishes two official sets: CACI for civil cases and CALCRIM for criminal cases, both designated as the state’s official pattern instructions under California Rules of Court, Rule 2.1050.1Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 2.1050 – Judicial Council Jury Instructions They are written in plain English so ordinary jurors can follow them, and getting them right matters: a flawed instruction can decide a verdict and become the basis for an appeal.
What CACI and CALCRIM Are
CACI (pronounced “Casey”) is the civil set. It covers disputes between private parties, including negligence, breach of contract, product liability, and how to calculate damages. CALCRIM is the criminal set. It covers offenses the state prosecutes, from theft to homicide, along with the mental state each offense requires.
Both replaced older instructions that had been criticized for dense legal language, and the Judicial Council specifically rewrote them to be understandable to a non-lawyer.2Judicial Branch of California. California Jury Instructions The rewrite is not cosmetic. Where the older civil instruction on burden of proof asked jurors whether evidence “preponderates,” CACI now simply tells them to decide whether a claim is “more likely to be true than not true.”3Judicial Branch of California. Civil Plain English Comparison
The Burden of Proof Each Set Applies
The single most consequential difference between CACI and CALCRIM is what the jury is told about how sure it must be.
In a civil case, CACI instructs the jury that a party must prove its claim is “more likely to be true than not true,” the standard lawyers call a preponderance of the evidence.3Judicial Branch of California. Civil Plain English Comparison Some civil claims use a middle standard, clear and convincing evidence, meaning the fact must be highly probable. This applies to specific issues such as fraud or punitive damages, where the stakes justify a higher bar than ordinary civil litigation but not the criminal standard.
In a criminal case the bar is far higher. CALCRIM No. 220 tells the jury that proof beyond a reasonable doubt is “proof that leaves you with an abiding conviction that the charge is true,” and that the evidence does not need to eliminate every possible doubt, only every reasonable one.4Justia Law. CALCRIM No. 220 – Reasonable Doubt
How Instructions Get Chosen and Delivered
The process starts early. In a civil case, California law requires the parties to deliver their proposed jury instructions to the judge and opposing counsel before the first witness is sworn. Additional instructions can be submitted later to cover legal issues that emerged during testimony.5Justia Law. California Code of Civil Procedure 607a-619
Before closing arguments, the judge decides which proposed instructions to give, refuse, or modify, and tells the attorneys what the jury will hear. This conference, sometimes called settling the instructions, is where the real fight happens: attorneys argue for language favorable to their side, object to the other side’s proposals, and negotiate wording. If something unexpected surfaces during closing arguments, the court can add instructions afterward.5Justia Law. California Code of Civil Procedure 607a-619
Special Instructions
Pattern instructions cover most situations, but not every case fits a form. Either party can ask the judge to give a special instruction crafted for a particular issue. The judge must give it as requested, refuse it, or give a modified version, and the record has to show what happened with each request.6Justia Law. California Code of Civil Procedure 607a-619 – Section 609 Judges tend to be cautious about departing from approved patterns, because non-standard language is more vulnerable on appeal.
Written Copies in the Deliberation Room
After reading the instructions aloud, the judge tells the jury that a written copy is available. Handing it over automatically is discretionary, but if the jury asks for one, the court must provide it.7Justia Law. California Code of Civil Procedure 607a-619 – Section 612.5 In criminal cases, all instructions must be given in writing unless a court reporter is present to transcribe them.
The written copy matters. The Judicial Council’s own deliberation guide advises jurors to start by reviewing the judge’s instructions, identifying each element the law requires them to find, and then working through the evidence element by element.8Judicial Council of California. A Guide to Jury Deliberations Jurors treat the instructions as the definitive statement of the law, regardless of what the attorneys argued.
When Jurors Ask Questions
In a criminal case, if the jury disagrees about testimony or wants clarification on a legal point during deliberation, it must be brought back into the courtroom, and the judge provides the requested information with both prosecutor and defense attorney present or notified.9California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1138 The point is to keep the jury from guessing about the law. Judges usually respond by re-reading the relevant instruction, sometimes with brief additional guidance. The same general principle applies in civil cases through a different statutory mechanism.
When a Flawed Instruction Can Overturn a Verdict
An incorrect or misleading jury instruction is one of the most common grounds for appeal in California. The state constitution sets the threshold: no verdict can be overturned for a flawed instruction unless the error resulted in a “miscarriage of justice.”10FindLaw. Constitution of the State of California Art. VI, Section 13 California courts have given that phrase a concrete test.
In civil cases, the California Supreme Court applies the Watson standard: reversal is required only if there is a reasonable probability that the jury would have reached a different result without the error. Soule v. General Motors laid out five factors for weighing that probability, including how conflicted the evidence was, whether the attorneys’ arguments made the error worse, whether the jury asked for a re-reading of the flawed instruction, how close the verdict was, and whether other instructions offset the mistake.11Justia Law. Soule v. General Motors Corp. (1994) A reasonable probability does not mean more likely than not; it means a reasonable chance beyond mere speculation.
Criminal instruction errors that implicate a defendant’s constitutional rights face a stricter test. The prosecution must show beyond a reasonable doubt that the error did not affect the verdict. Instruction errors involving elements of a crime or the reasonable doubt standard frequently lead to reversals under this test.
Object at Trial or Lose the Issue
Timing matters. If an attorney disagrees with an instruction, the objection has to be on the record before the jury deliberates. In civil cases, an error in law at trial is a recognized ground for a new trial, but only if the party objected at the time.12California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 657 Criminal cases have a narrow safety valve: an appellate court can review a jury instruction even without an objection if the defendant’s substantial rights were affected. That exception exists because the consequences of a criminal conviction are so severe, but no defense attorney should plan around it.
Where to Read the Instructions
Both sets are free on the California courts website. CACI is published through the Civil Jury Instructions Resource Center, and CALCRIM is available through the Criminal Jury Instructions Advisory Committee page.2Judicial Branch of California. California Jury Instructions Reading the instructions that apply to your case before trial is one of the most useful things a party or prospective juror can do. The language is written to be accessible, and seeing exactly what the jury will be asked to decide removes much of the mystery from the process.