28 U.S.C. § 1870
Section 1870 · Challenges
Amended 2 times on record
Applied in 71 court decisions — leading case Edmonson v. Leesville Concrete Co. (1991)
Most recently applied in In the Matter of the Termination of Parental Rights To: LDB, TJB, and JCB, Minor Children, Sheryl Lynn Ellis v. State of Wyoming, Department of Family Services (December 2019)
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
In civil cases, each party shall be entitled to three peremptory challenges. Several defendants or several plaintiffs may be considered as a single party for the purposes of making challenges, or the court may allow additional peremptory challenges and permit them to be exercised separately or jointly.
All challenges for cause or favor, whether to the array or panel or to individual jurors, shall be determined by the court.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Historical and Revision Notes
Based on title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed., §424 (Mar. 3, 1911, ch. 231, §287, 36 Stat. 1166).
Provisions of section 424 of title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed., relating to the number of peremptory challenges in criminal cases were deleted as superseded by Rule 24 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure.
The last sentence of the first paragraph was added to permit the same flexibility in the matter of challenges in civil cases as is permitted in criminal cases by said Rule 24.
Words “without aid of triers” at end of section 424 of title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed., were omitted as surplusage.
Changes were made in phraseology.
Amendments
1959—Pub. L. 86–282 substituted “may” for “shall” after “several plaintiffs”, and “, or the court may allow” for “. If there is more than one defendant the court may allow the defendants”.
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
Alternate jurors, challenges, see rule 47, Appendix to this title.
Jurors and juries, see rules 38, 39, 47 and 48.
Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure
Criminal cases, jury challenges, see rule 24, Title 18, Appendix, Crimes and Criminal Procedure.
Cross References
Challenges in summary trials, see section 394 of Title 33, Navigation and Navigable Waters.