In a California civil case, at least three-fourths of the jurors must agree before the court can enter a verdict. On a standard twelve-person panel, that means nine jurors. California does not require unanimity in civil trials, and the three-fourths math applies no matter how large or small the agreed jury.
The Three-Fourths Rule
The Code of Civil Procedure says the jury, “or three-fourths of them,” must concur before the foreperson delivers the verdict in court.1California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 618 A standard civil jury has twelve members, but both sides can agree to seat fewer. The statute allows “any number less than 12, upon which the parties may agree,” with no stated minimum.2California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 220 – Trial Jury Selection and Management Act
How the three-fourths threshold works in practice:
- 12-member jury: at least 9 must agree.
- 8-member jury: at least 6 must agree.
- 6-member jury: at least 5 must agree, rounding up from 4.5.
The smaller the panel, the more weight each individual juror carries. On a six-person jury, losing two votes is enough to prevent a verdict.
Polling the Jury After the Verdict
Once the foreperson reads the verdict, either side can ask the court to poll the jury. The judge or clerk asks each juror individually whether the announced verdict is that juror’s verdict. If more than one-fourth disagree, the jury is sent back to deliberate. If no one disagrees, or the dissent stays within one-fourth, the verdict is final and the jury is discharged.1California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 618
Polling is the moment when the three-fourths threshold is confirmed on the record. A juror who felt pushed during deliberations has one last chance to say so out loud. Losing attorneys routinely request a poll because it costs nothing and occasionally reveals a juror who changed their mind between signing the verdict form and hearing it read.
When the Jury Cannot Reach Three-Fourths
If fewer than three-fourths of the jurors can agree after extended deliberations, the jury is deadlocked. The judge will typically instruct the panel to keep deliberating, often with a standard admonition encouraging jurors to reconsider their positions with an open mind while not abandoning sincerely held views. California does not use the “Allen charge” common in federal courts, which has been criticized as pressuring holdout jurors.
If further deliberation fails, the court declares a mistrial. A mistrial does not resolve the dispute. Both sides then choose: settle, dismiss, or start over with a new jury. Settlement talks often become more productive after a hung jury, because both sides now have real information about how jurors reacted to the evidence. The cost and delay of a retrial push at least one side toward compromise in many cases.
California law does not explicitly cap the number of retrials after a deadlock, but practical constraints do the limiting. Each retrial means fresh jury fees, more attorney time, and additional months of waiting. Courts also have discretion to manage their calendars, and a case that hangs repeatedly may face pressure from the bench to resolve some other way.
Federal Court Cases Are Different
The three-fourths rule applies only in California state court. If your civil case is in a federal court sitting in California, the verdict must be unanimous unless both sides agree otherwise, and the panel has between six and twelve members.3Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 48 – Number of Jurors, Verdict, Polling Every juror must agree, not just three-fourths.
This matters more than most people expect. A case involving parties from different states, or a claim under federal law, will be tried under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure even if the courthouse is in Los Angeles or San Francisco. Jury size and the unanimity requirement are procedural questions governed by federal law, not California law. A plaintiff who assumes the familiar three-fourths standard will apply can be caught off guard when every single juror has to be persuaded. If your case could be filed in either forum, the unanimity requirement is worth weighing before you choose.