Art. 1731 Issues triable by jury

If you're involved in a lawsuit in Louisiana, you generally have the right to have your case heard by a jury instead of just a judge. This rule explains how courts decide whether a jury gets to hear a case.

The main factor is the original claim in the lawsuit, meaning what the case is actually about and how much money is involved. Whether a jury trial is allowed depends on these details of the main claim. This same rule usually applies to any related claims that come up alongside the main one.

There's one exception worth knowing. If someone files a required counterclaim (a claim they must bring because it's connected to the original lawsuit) and that counterclaim qualifies for a jury trial, it can still go before a jury. This is true even if the main claim itself doesn't qualify for a jury trial. So in some cases, part of a lawsuit might be decided by a jury while another part is not.