Editing Jury instructions (section)

{{Short description|Legal rules from a judge to jurors}}
'''Jury instructions''', also known as '''charges''' or '''directions''', are a set of legal guidelines given by a judge to a jury in a court of law. They are an important procedural step in a [[Jury trial|trial by jury]], and as such are a cornerstone of criminal process in many [[common law countries]].

The purpose of instructions are to inform the jury about the legal principles and standards that they must apply in order to reach a verdict. This ensures that criminal trials are fair and lawful. They are typically delivered after closing arguments, but sometimes may be delivered mid-trial if necessary.

In some cases, the instructions given by a judge to the jury are incorrect, which may (depending on the issue) result in a [[mistrial]].