By Lea S. Gifford

Carol J. DeFrances, Ph.D.,

and Marika F. X. Litras, Ph.D.

BJS Statisticians

In 1996 State courts of general jurisdiction in the Nation’s 75 largest counties

disposed of approximately 15,638 tort,

contract, and real property rights cases

by jury or bench trial. Contract cases

accounted for about a third of all trial

cases disposed. 

This report provides an in-depth examination of contract cases decided by a

jury or judge in the Nation’s 75 largest

counties. For purposes of this report,

contract disputes involve fraud,

employment discrimination or dispute, 

tortious interference1

, or allegations of

unfulfilled agreements between buyers

and sellers, lenders and borrowers, or

landlords and tenants.

This report is the second in a series

based on data collected from the Civil

Justice Survey of State Courts, 1996.

The first report of the series, Civil Trial

Cases and Verdicts in Large Counties,

1996 (NCJ 173426), provided a

general overview of tort, contract, and

real property cases decided by jury or

bench trial. The sample of civil cases

excluded cases that did not go to trial,

trials in Federal courts, trials in State

courts of limited jurisdiction, and trials

in counties outside the 75 largest.

U.S. Department of Justice 

Office of Justice Programs

Bureau of Justice Statistics

Bulletin

Civil Justice Survey of State Courts, 1996 

Contract Trials and Verdicts 

in Large Counties, 1996

 April 2000, NCJ 179451

 In 1996 an estimated 4,850

contract cases were disposed of by

trial in State courts in the Nation’s 75

largest counties. Sixty-one percent of

contract cases were decided by a

judge and 36% by a jury.

 The most common type of contract

trial case involved an individual suing

a business (34%), followed by a

nonindividual (an organization) suing

a business (26%). In 18% of the

contract cases an individual sued

another individual. 

 Plaintiffs were seeking payment

owed to them (seller plaintiff) in over

half of the contract lawsuits brought

by construction companies (71%),

banks (68%), sellers of goods (58%),

sellers of services (54%), and

manufacturers (53%). 

 Plaintiffs won 62% of contract trial

cases. They were more likely to win

cases decided by a judge (68%) than

by a jury (56%).

 Jury trial awards: Juries awarded

a median of $80,000 in final award

amounts to plaintiff winners in

contract cases. Plaintiffs won 48% 

of employment discrimination cases

disposed of by jury trial and were

awarded a median final award

amount of $250,000. The median

final award amount for seller plaintiff

winners was $62,000.

 Bench trial awards: Half of the

plaintiff winners in contract cases

disposed of by bench trial were

awarded final amounts of $25,000 

or more. The median final award 

for plaintiff winners in fraud cases

disposed of by bench trial was

$32,000, in rental/lease cases it was

$28,000.

Employment discrimination

Employment disputes 

Buyer plaintiff 

Tortious interference 

 Fraud 

All contract cases 

Rental/lease agreement 

Seller plaintiff 

Mortgage foreclosure 

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Percent of plaintiff winners in contract cases disposed of by trial in State

general jurisdiction courts in the Nation’s 75 largest counties, 1996

Highlights

1

Tortious interference cases are tort

claims arising out of contractual disputes. 
Types of cases and dispositions

Cases involving contract disputes

comprised 31% of all tort, contract, 

and real property rights trial cases

disposed of in general jurisdiction

courts in the Nation’s 75 largest

counties. The most frequent type 

of contract dispute involved a seller

plaintiff seeking compensation from 

a buyer or borrower (34%), followed 

by buyer plaintiff (17%) and fraud

(14%) (table1).

Of the approximately 4,850 contract

cases tried in 1996, 61% were decided

by a judge, 36% by a jury. The remaining 3% were disposed of by directed

verdict, judgment notwithstanding, or

jury verdicts for defaulted defendants.

(See page 13 for definitions.)

Types of litigants

The approximately 4,850 contract trial

cases in the Nation’s 75 largest

counties involved over 15,800 litigants

(about 6,300 plaintiffs and 9,500 defendants). About 22% of all contract trial

cases involved multiple plaintiffs,

making an overall average of 1.3 plaintiffs per case. About half of the contract trial cases involved more than one

defendant. There were on average two

defendants per case (not shown in

table). General jurisdiction courts

decided slightly more than 5 contract

trial cases per 100,000 residents of the

75 counties (not shown in table).

In more than half of the contract trial

cases disposed of, the primary plaintiff

was an individual (not shown in a

table).

2

 A business was the plaintiff

43% of the time. About two percent of

the contract trial cases involved a

hospital or government as plaintiff. A

business was the defendant in 63% of

contract trial cases, an individual in

32%, a government in nearly 4%, and a

hospital in about 1%.

2 Contract Trials and Verdicts in Large Counties, 1996 

* Includes cases disposed of by directed verdict, judgment 

notwithstanding the verdict, and jury verdicts for defaulted defendants.

Detail may not sum to 100% because of rounding.

 Other contract 291 6.0 33.4 64.1 2.5

 Tortious interference 236 4.9 47.5 48.0 4.5

 Rental/lease agreements 500 10.3 26.8 71.8 1.4

 Other employment dispute 309 6.4 44.4 49.5 6.1

 Employment discrimination 311 6.4 66.8 28.0 5.2

 Mortgage foreclosure 65 1.3 10.7 83.0 6.3

 Buyer plaintiff 832 17.2 48.3 47.8 3.9

 Seller plaintiff 1,637 33.8 21.7 76.6 1.7

 Fraud 668 13.8 43.4 52.8 3.8

All contract cases 4,850 100% 35.9% 61.0% 3.1%

Jury Bench Other*

Percent 

of cases

Number

Case type of cases

Percent of each type 

of disposition

Table 1. Types of disposition by types of contract cases 

in State courts in the Nation’s 75 largest counties, 1996

Note: Plaintiff or defendant type is whichever type appears first in this list: 

(1) hospital/medical company, (2) business, (3) government agency, 

(4) individual. For example, any case involving a hospital defendant is 

categorized as a hospital even if there were also business, individual, or 

government defendants in the case.

Detail for litigant types was available for 99.8% of all contract trial cases. 

Detail may not sum to 100% because of rounding.

-- No cases recorded.

*Includes insurance companies, banks and financial companies, 

construction and real estate development companies, service and 

goods sellers, manufacturing companies, and other businesses.

1,543 184 3,051 64

Number of cases with each 

type of defendant

Other contract 7.2 14.5 4.9 7.8

Tortious interference 3.8 1.1 5.7 1.6

Rental/lease agreements 15.2 7.9 8.0 7.7

Other employment dispute 2.8 16.5 7.0 33.4

Employment discrimination 1.0 42.0 6.7 21.8

Mortgage foreclosure 1.3 -- 1.4 3.1

Buyer plaintiff 8.6 5.5 22.5 3.9

Seller plaintiff 45.9 8.4 29.4 20.7

Fraud 14.2 4.1 14.5 --

All contract cases 100% 100% 100% 100%

Individual Government Business* Hospital

Percent of each type of defendant

2,661 37 2,091 54

Number of cases with each 

type of plaintiff 

Other contract 6.0 3.4 6.0 9.9

Tortious interference 3.9 3.4 6.2 1.9

Rental/lease agreements 8.8 23.5 12.1 3.7

Other employment dispute 9.5 30.7 2.0 3.6

Employment discrimination 11.0 13.0 0.7 --

Mortgage foreclosure 1.0 -- 1.8 --

Buyer plaintiff 22.8 -- 10.3 16.9

Seller plaintiff 19.8 14.7 51.3 53.7

Fraud 17.1 11.3 9.7 10.4

All contract cases 100% 100% 100% 100%

Individual Government Business* Hospital

Percent of each type of plaintiff

Table 2. Types of plaintiffs or defendants, by types of contract cases

in State courts in the Nation’s 75 largest counties, 1996

2

Litigant type for each case is whichever

type appears first in this list: (1) hospital/

medical organization, (2) business, (3)

government agency, (4) individual. For

example, a case involving a hospital plaintiff is categorized as a hospital plaintiff

case even if there were also business,

individual, or government plaintiffs.
Individuals were buyer plaintiffs (23%)

more often than were businesses

(10%). Individuals also were more

often the plaintiffs in fraud cases (17%)

than were businesses (10%).

Businesses were seller plaintiffs (51%)

more often than were governments

(15%) or individuals (20%) (table 2).

Individuals were the most likely defendants in seller plaintiff contract trials

(46%). Businesses were the most

likely defendants in buyer plaintiff trials

(23%). Governments were more likely

than individuals, businesses, or hospitals to be the defendant in employment

discrimination contract trials.

Business plaintiffs and defendants

In 1996 businesses were plaintiffs in

2,091 contract trial cases in the

Nation’s 75 largest counties. Over half

of the contract lawsuits brought by

construction companies (71%), banks

(68%), sellers of goods (58%), sellers

of services (54%), and manufacturers

(53%), were those in which a business

was seeking payment from a buyer or

borrower (seller plaintiff) (table 3).

Fifty-six percent of the contract cases

brought by real estate development

companies involved rental/lease agreement cases. About a quarter of the

contract lawsuits initiated by insurance

companies involved fraud and an

additional third involved seller plaintiff

cases. 

Businesses were named as defendants in 3,051 contract cases in 1996.

Fifty-seven percent of the cases that

involved an insurance company as

defendant were buyer plaintiff cases, 

in which a purchaser of goods or

services, seeks return of their money,

recision of the contract or delivery of

the specified goods.

About a third of the contract lawsuits

brought against construction companies (37%), sellers of goods (37%),

and real estate development companies (33%) were seller plaintiff cases.

 Contract Trials and Verdicts in Large Counties, 1996 3

Note: Detail on type of business was available for 100% of business plaintiffs and defendants. 

Detail may not sum to 100% because of rounding. 

*Includes other businesses, other organizations and other combinations of businesses such 

as a construction or real estate development company as plaintiffs or an insurance company

and construction company as defendants. 

--No cases recorded.

370 158 244 235 812 529 139 564

Number of cases with each 

type of defendant

Other contract 5.3 4.0 10.5 6.6 2.6 4.3 4.5 5.6

Tortious interference 5.4 8.3 0.5 8.3 6.3 6.2 3.3 5.5

Rental/lease agreements 0.6 2.5 3.2 18.0 9.6 7.6 2.3 12.1

Other employment dispute 5.0 8.8 2.1 1.9 10.0 6.2 8.8 7.8

Employment discrimination 1.6 3.4 3.9 2.7 8.2 8.5 28.1 4.7

Mortgage foreclosure 0.3 9.7 -- 3.2 0.8 1.1 -- 1.2

Buyer plaintiff 57.4 18.3 36.4 9.2 18.3 17.5 10.3 13.7

Seller plaintiff 10.1 18.7 36.5 32.6 26.9 37.2 27.7 37.3

Fraud 14.4 26.2 6.8 17.6 17.2 11.4 15.0 12.0

All contract cases 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Other*

Manufacturer 

Goods

seller

Service

seller 

Real estate

development

company 

Construction

Bank company

Insurance

company

Percent of each type of business defendant

106 266 185 190 624 420 95 205

Number of cases with each 

type of plaintiff

Other contract 23.9 4.2 6.6 5.2 2.6 3.9 15.2 9.3

Tortious interference 4.2 1.7 6.1 7.1 7.3 6.5 1.1 10.6

Rental/lease agreements 1.2 8.6 1.6 55.6 7.7 7.0 4.1 19.1

Other employment dispute 4.9 -- 1.1 -- 3.9 0.8 1.1 2.4

Employment discrimination -- -- -- -- 1.5 -- 2.1 1.5

Mortgage foreclosure 0.9 8.9 -- 2.6 0.3 -- -- 3.0

Buyer plaintiff 6.4 0.5 11.3 6.7 12.2 12.4 13.4 16.3

Seller plaintiff 34.0 68.4 70.5 17.4 53.6 58.0 52.8 30.2

Fraud 24.4 7.6 2.9 5.5 10.7 11.5 10.3 7.5

All contract cases 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Other*

ManufacturerGoods

seller

Service

seller

Real estate

development

company

Construction

Bank company

Insurance

company

Percent of each type of business plaintiff

Table 3. Types of business plaintiffs and defendants, by types of contract cases 

in State courts in the Nation’s 75 largest counties, 1996
More than half of the cases in which

manufacturers were named as defendants were seller plaintiff (28%) or

employment discrimination (28%)

cases.

Primary litigant pairings

Individuals sued businesses in 34% 

of all contract cases, including 44% 

of fraud cases, 58% of buyer plaintiff

cases (table 4), and 64% of employment discrimination cases (not shown

in a table). Individuals sued other

individuals in 18% of all contract cases,

including 23% of fraud cases and 30%

of rental/lease agreement cases (not

shown in a table).

Nonindividuals (businesses, governments, or hospitals) sued individuals in

13% of all contract cases, including

24% of seller plaintiff cases. Nonindividuals sued businesses in 26% of 

all contract cases.

4 Contract Trials and Verdicts in Large Counties, 1996 

Note: Plaintiff or defendant type is whichever appears first: (1) hospital/medical company, 

(2) business, (3) government agency, (4) individual. For example, any case involving a 

hospital defendant is categorized as a hospital even if there were also business, individual, 

or government defendants in the case. Data for litigant pairings were available for 100% 

of all contract trial cases. Detail may not sum to 100% because of rounding.

--No cases recorded.

*Includes insurance companies, banks and financial companies, construction and 

real estate development companies, service and goods sellers, manufacturing

companies, and other businesses.

Other litigant pairings 258 5.3 56 8.4 74 4.5 40 4.8

Hospital 16 0.3 -- -- 7 0.4 -- --

Business* 1,245 25.7 106 15.9 629 38.5 173 20.8

Government 46 0.9 -- -- 6 0.4 5 0.6

Individual 616 12.7 49 7.4 390 23.9 8 1.0

Nonindividual versus:

Hospital 45 0.9 -- -- 6 0.4 3 0.3

Business* 1,623 33.5 293 43.9 221 13.5 479 57.6

Government 134 2.8 8 1.1 9 0.6 5 0.6

Individual 858 17.7 155 23.2 290 17.8 120 14.4

Individual versus:

All contract cases 4,850 100% 668 100% 1,637 100% 832 100%

Percent

Number

Percent of cases

Number

Percent of cases

Number

Percent of cases

Number

of cases

Plaintiff versus

primary defendant

Fraud Seller plaintiff Buyer plaintiff

All contract

cases

Table 4. Pairings of primary litigants in selected types of contract cases

in State courts in the Nation’s 75 largest counties, 1996

Note: Data on case type and amounts of total, compensatory and punitive damages awarded were available for

98.3% of the plaintiff winner trial cases awarded damages. In this study cases are classified by the primary case

type, though many cases involve multiple claims, such as contract and tort. Under most State laws, only tort claims

qualify for punitive damages. If a contract case involved punitive damages, it must also have involved a tort claim.

Detail may not sum to total because of rounding.

--No cases recorded.

*Not a median, but the actual amount awarded.

Other contract 185 92 49.9 83 25,129 27 304 4 220 55 55

Tortious interference 113 53 46.8 53 2,535 24 48 3 203 39 62

Rental/lease 359 247 68.9 241 21,665 28 90 1 50 50

Other employment dispute 153 80 52.3 78 4,832 18 62 9 259 6 29

Employment discrimination 87 23 26.0 17 1,595 75 94 1 30 30

Mortgage foreclosure 54 46 85.5 44 3,624 51 82 -- -- -- --

Buyer plaintiff 398 259 65.2 257 16,357 15 64 19 884 30 46

Seller plaintiff 1,254 995 79.3 983 92,055 26 94 9 188 27 21

Fraud 352 208 59.1 207 167,814 32 810 27 73,653 39 2,768

All bench cases 2,955 2,003 67.8% 1,963 $335,605 $25 $171 73 $75,494 $30 $1,034

Bench trials

Other contract 97 59 60.3 56 38,513 100 688 5 1,473 27 301

Tortious interference 112 75 66.7 72 112,443 123 1,567 8 9,660 38 1,181

Rental/lease 134 63 47.2 60 14,168 55 238 4 107 31 28

Other employment dispute 137 73 53.4 72 45,193 183 625 11 3,330 127 316

Employment discrimination 208 99 47.6 98 52,575 250 537 24 11,581 259 491

Mortgage foreclosure 7 6 85.6 6 375 58 63 -- -- -- --

Buyer plaintiff 399 196 49.0 185 96,564 49 523 21 30,514 254 1,425

Seller plaintiff 355 229 64.6 228 129,510 62 567 7 38,805 300 5,473

Fraud 290 167 57.6 164 87,618 79 533 25 1,482 20 60

All jury cases 1,740 967 55.6% 941 $576,958 $80 $613 104 $96,952 $76 $931

Jury trials

All contract trials 4,844 3,021 62.4% 2,953 $925,859 $37 $313 189 $173,581 $40 $917

Total Median Mean

Number

Total Median Mean of cases

Number

Percent of cases

Number

of cases

number

Case type of cases

Punitive damages awarded

to plaintiff winners

(dollar amounts in thousands)

Final amount awarded

to plaintiff winners

Total Plaintiff winners (dollar amounts in thousands)

Table 5. Trial verdicts and final award amounts for contract cases with plaintiff winners 

in State courts in the Nation's 75 largest counties, 1996
Plaintiff winners and awards

Plaintiffs won about 62% of contract

cases disposed of by trial in the

Nation’s 75 largest counties during

1996 (table 5).

Overall, plaintiffs won more often in

contract cases decided by a bench trial

(68%) than a jury trial (56%). Plaintiffs

were more likely to win in seller

plaintiff, rental lease, and buyer plaintiff

cases decided by a judge. In employment discrimination cases, however,

plaintiffs won more jury trials (48%)

than they did bench trials (26%).

Approximately 3,000 plaintiff winners

received a total of $919 million in final

awards. Half of the plaintiff winners

received final awards of $37,000 or

more. 

Six percent (189 cases) of the plaintiff

winners were awarded punitive

damages totalling about $174 million. 

Half of these plaintiff winners received

$40,000 or more.

Although plaintiffs won more often in

bench trials, plaintiffs won larger award

amounts in jury trials. Plaintiff winners

in jury trials received median final

awards of $80,000 compared with

median awards of $25,000 in bench

trials. 

Plaintiffs who won employment

discrimination cases were awarded

total final award amounts of $52.5

million by juries compared to $1.5

million by judges in bench trials.

Trial awards by litigant pairings

Nonindividuals (businesses, governments, or hospitals) who sued individuals won 73% of contract trials during

1996 (table 6). They won 69% of

contract trials against businesses. 

Individuals won 64% of contract trials

brought against other individuals,

compared to 55% of contract trials

brought against businesses. 

The median final award to nonindividual plaintiff winners who won suits

against businesses was $47,000.

Punitive damages were awarded in an

estimated 21 out of 1,245 cases in

which a nonindividual sued a business.

The median punitive damage award

was $61,000. 

In the 75 largest counties in 1996,

juries and judges awarded an

estimated $211 million to individual

plaintiff winners who successfully sued

businesses. Half of these individual

plaintiff winners were awarded $41,000

or more. Punitive damages were

awarded in an estimated 104 cases in

which an individual sued a business.

The median punitive damage award

was $49,000.

 Contract Trials and Verdicts in Large Counties, 1996 5

defendant is categorized as a hospital even if there were also business, 

individual, or government defendants in the case. 

--No cases recorded. 

b

Includes cases with a directed verdict, those with a judgment not withstanding

the verdict, and those with a jury trial for defaulted defendants. c

Includes insurance companies, banks, construction companies, real estate 

development companies, service sellers, goods sellers, manufacturing

companies, and other businesses and organizations. d

May include government, business, and/or hospital litigants.

Note: Data on litigant pairings and final award amounts were available for 97.7% of plaintiff winners. a

Plaintiff or defendant type is whichever type appears first in this list: (1) hospital/medical company, 

(2) business, (3) government agency, (4) individual. For example, any case involving a hospital

Hospital 16 100.0 16 1,948 78 -- -- --

Business 1,245 68.9 851 442,790 47 21 121,153 61 c

Government 46 40.1 18 27,688 358 -- -- --

Individual 616 73.0% 444 $49,470 $22 9 $260 $17

Noninidviduald

 versus:

Hospital 3 0.0 -- -- -- -- -- --

Business 183 61.1 109 54,111 99 9 414 27 c

Government 4 25.0 1 7,710 7,710 -- -- --

Individual 68 60.7% 42 $44,218 $39 1 $156 $156

Individual and 

nonindividuald

 versus:

Hospital 45 63.0 27 5,218 68 4 660 252

Business 1,618 55.2 863 211,455 41 104 46,556 49 c

Government 134 36.0 39 27,273 224 1 1 1

Individual 857 63.9% 536 $47,229 $25 40 $4,381 $34

Individual versus:

All contract trial cases 4,836 62.3% 2,947 $919,109 $37 189 $173,581 $40 b

 

Total Median

Number 

Total Median of cases

Number

of cases

plaintiff

winners

number 

Litigant pairs of cases a

Punitive damages awarded

to plaintiff winners 

(dollar amounts in thousands)

Final amount awarded

to plaintiff winners 

Total Percent (dollar amounts in thousands)

Table 6. Pairings of primary types of litigants in contract trials in 

State courts in the Nation's 75 largest counties, 1996
Among specific types of cases in which

an individual sued a business, the

individual won in two-thirds of seller

plaintiff (66%) and rental/lease cases

(66%) (table 7). Half of the individual

plaintiff winners who brought employment discrimination cases against

businesses were awarded $272,000 or

more. In 52% of these employment

discrimination cases, the final awardwas over $250,000 and in 16% of the

cases, it was $1 million or more. 

Nonindividuals suing businesses won

in 77% of both fraud and seller plaintiff

cases. The median final award to

nonindividual plaintiff winners in fraud

cases was $64,000 and in seller plaintiff cases $40,000. Thirty-six percent of

the nonindividual plaintiff winners in

tortious interference cases won final

awards over $250,000, and 19% won

final awards of $1 million or more.

6 Contract Trials and Verdicts in Large Counties, 1996 

Note: Data on litigant pairings, plaintiff winners, and type of case were available for 99.7% of 

individual versus business cases and 100% of nonindividual versus business cases. Data on

final awards for plaintiff winners were available for 96.6% of individual versus business cases

and 99.2% of nonindividual versus business cases.

--No cases recorded.

a

Business litigants include insurance companies, banks, construction companies, 

real estate development companies, service sellers, goods sellers, manufacturing

companies, other businesses and other organizations. b

Includes cases with a directed verdict, those with a judgment not withstanding the 

verdict, and those with a jury trial for defaulted defendants. c

May include government, business, and/or hospital litigants.

Other contract 66 43.9 29 6,978 136 23.5 5.9

Tortious interference 76 53.2 41 75,498 123 36.1 18.7

Rental/lease agreement 147 69.0 97 13,410 44 10.9 1.3

Other employment dispute 16 39.4 6 356 27 -- --

Employment discrimination 8 75.4 6 409 50 -- --

Mortgage foreclosure 25 86.8 20 2,355 76 -- --

Buyer plaintiff 173 51.9 90 21,728 53 13.5 3.6

Seller plaintiff 629 76.6 480 148,461 40 14.1 3.1

Fraud 106 77.4% 82 $173,597 $64 27.4% 15.6%

All contract trial cases 1,245 68.9% 851 $442,790 $47 15.8% 4.9% b

Nonindividualc versus businessa

Other contract 73 51.3 35 2,142 18 6.4 --

Tortious interference 72 52.1 36 12,533 27 8.6 8.6

Rental/lease agreement 81 65.6 52 8,221 48 11.3 9.0

Other employment dispute 189 53.0 99 34,260 61 22.6 6.5

Employment discrimination 194 43.2 76 43,947 272 52.4 15.8

Mortgage foreclosure 19 55.3 11 570 8 -- --

Buyer plaintiff 476 56.1 254 58,351 22 9.8 3.3

Seller plaintiff 221 66.4 146 154,429 54 16.5 --

Fraud 293 53.5% 154 $36,000 $52 13.8% 5.2%

All contract trial cases 1,618 55.2% 863 $211,455 $41 16.7% 5.0% b

Individual versus businessa

$1 million

or more

Over

Total Median $250,000

Number

of cases

plaintiff

winners

number 

Types of litigants and cases of cases

Percent of plaintiffwinner cases with

final awards 

Final amount awarded to

plaintiff winners (in thousands

Total Percent of dollars)

Table 7. Plaintiff winner cases and final award amounts, by selected litigant pairings 

and selected case types in State courts in the Nation's 75 largest counties, 1996
Case processing time

Half of contract cases decided by a jury

took 23 months or less to go from filing

of the complaint to final verdict or

judgment, compared to about 17

months or less for bench trials (table

8). Juries disposed of 54% of the

contract cases in less than two years,

and judges about 72%.

The longest processing time for a

contract case recorded in the sample

was 145 months (table 9); in that case

an individual sued another individual.

Among cases in which an individual

sued a business, the case with the

longest processing time from filing of

the complaint to final verdict or

judgment was about 100 months.

Jury trials for contract cases lasted

about 6 days on average compared to

about 2 days for bench trials. Among

jury trials, employment discrimination

trials were the longest, averaging about

9 days, while mortgage foreclosures

were the shortest, averaging about 3

days (not shown in a table). 

 Contract Trials and Verdicts in Large Counties, 1996 7

Note: Data for filing time to final verdict or judgement, including answer filed and trial start date, 

and case type were available for 88% of jury trial cases and 79% of bench trial cases.

Not included are trial cases disposed by directed verdicts, judgment notwithstanding

 the verdict and jury trials for defaulted defendants. Detail may not sum to total 

because of rounding.

--No cases recorded. 

 Other contract 81 24.0 28.7 45.0 10.5 164 16.7 22.7 68.0 9.8

 Tortious interference 107 23.2 27.2 54.3 8.2 94 15.9 22.9 72.9 7.5

 Rental/lease 111 18.9 22.4 68.9 6.8 298 15.1 19.4 75.2 4.7

 Other employment dispute 129 22.0 26.6 54.0 10.5 127 20.4 21.5 63.8 4.0

 Employment discrimination 192 23.6 27.9 51.6 11.8 81 17.3 22.3 68.9 4.8

 Mortgage foreclosure 7 27.4 23.8 38.5 -- 39 16.5 21.7 73.5 11.0

 Buyer plaintiff 341 22.0 25.0 54.8 8.5 297 17.8 21.2 73.1 5.4

 Seller plaintiff 310 21.8 25.5 55.3 7.9 937 16.3 19.7 73.5 2.7

 Fraud 253 23.7 27.9 50.9 11.4 313 17.7 22.0 69.5 5.7

Contract cases 1,531 22.6 26.2 54.2% 9.4% 2,350 16.8 20.7 72.0% 4.6%

4 years

or more

Less than

2 years

Mean

(months)

Median

(months)

4 years

or more

Less than

2 years

Mean

(months)

Median

Case type (months)

Number of cases disposed of in 

bench trial

cases

Number of cases disposed of in 

jury trial

cases

Percent of jury trial Percent of bench trial 

From filing of complaint to jury final disposition From filing of complaint to bench final disposition

Table 8. Case processing time from filing of complaint to final verdict or judgment 

in State courts in the Nation's 75 largest counties, 1996

Note: Data on filing time to final verdict or judgment, including answer filed and 

trial start date, were available for 83% of all contract trial cases. 

a

Plaintiff or defendant type is whichever type appears first in this list: (1) hospital/medical

company, (2) business, (3) government agency, (4) individual. For example, any case 

involving a hospital defendant is categorized as a hospital even if there were also 

business, individual, or government defendants in the case. b

Includes cases with a directed verdict, those with a judgement 

not withstanding the verdict, and those with a jury trial for defaulted defendants. c

Includes insurance companies, banks, construction companies, real estate 

development companies, service sellers, goods sellers, manufacturing companies, 

and other businesses and organizations. d

May include government, business, and/or hospital litigants.

Hospital 14 16.5 10.1 46.7

Business 1,017 19.6 1.4 93.2 c

Government 43 15.5 6.2 50.4

Individual 469 15.5 0.9 114.9

Nonindividual

d

 versus:

Hospital 3 35.7 19.4 35.7

Business 154 19.9 4.8 74.7 c

Government 4 32.3 18.2 39.6

Individual 51 22.2 8.7 98.8

Individual and nonindividuald

versus:

Hospital 39 19.4 10.1 71.8

Business 1,375 19.8 0.9 99.5 c

Government 121 19.7 1.8 89.5

Individual 713 18.8 0.5 145.0

Individual versus:

All contract trial cases 4,008 19.1 0.5 145.0 b

 

 Number of months 

Median Minimum Maximum

Number of

contract

Litigant pairs cases a

Table 9. Case processing time from filing of complaint to final

verdict or judgment for pairings of primary litigants in contract

trials in State courts in the Nation's 75 largest counties, 1996
8 Contract Trials and Verdicts in Large Counties, 1996 

 Plaintiffs won $1 million or more in

138 contract trial cases in the Nation’s

75 largest counties during 1996. A jury

decided 76% of these cases. 

 A business was the plaintiff winner in

56% of the $1 million or more cases,

and an individual was the plaintiff

winner in 43%. About 39% of these

cases involved more than one plaintiff

winner. 

 Punitive damages were not awarded

in the majority (81%) of the cases in

which a plaintiff was awarded $1 million

or more in total damages.

Plaintiff winners were awarded $1

million or more in 20% of fraud cases

and 19% of seller plaintiff cases.

Contract trials with final awards 

of $1 million or more

 Contract cases can be filed in 

U.S. district court when (1) the U.S.

government is a plaintiff, (2) the U.S.

government is a defendant, (3) the

case constitutes a Federal question,

or (4) the citizenship or state

residency of the litigants differ.

 During 1996 about 33,000 contract

cases were terminated in U.S. district

courts. About 3% of these were

terminated by a jury or bench trial. 

 Contract cases related to insurance

issues accounted for about 29% of

contract trial cases disposed of in

U.S. district courts during 1996.

 More than 9 in 10 contract cases

disposed of by trial in U.S. district

courts were between private parties.

The U.S. Government (as either

plaintiff or defendant) was involved 

in about 5% of cases.

 A jury decided 47% of contract trial

cases disposed of in U.S. district

courts during 1996. Insurance

related contract cases were more

likely to be decided by a jury (59%)

relative to other types of contract

cases.

Plaintiffs won about 56% of contract

cases disposed of by trial in U.S.

district courts during 1996. Plaintiffs

were successful in 48% of insurance

related trials.

Plaintiff winners were awarded

monetary damages in 78% of

contract cases disposed of by trial 

in U.S. district courts, with monetary

damages totaling $459 million. The

median award was $143,000. 

Contract cases tried in Federal courts, 1996

Federal

contract

cases

terminated

33,094

Jury or bench trials

849

(3% of 33,094)

Nontrial cases

33,253

(98% of 33,094)

Plaintif f winner

417

(56% of 750

known cases)

Monetary awards

326

(78% of 416

known cases)

Contract cases terminated in U.S. district courts, 1996

 In cases with claims and counterclaims, the distinction between

plaintiff and defendant becomes

less clear. It is possible that one

party originally named as a defendant countersues the plaintiff and

actually wins damages.

 In 5% of the 4,850 contract trial

cases, the defendant won on a

counterclaim. Neither the plaintiff

nor the defendant won in 33% of the

cases, while plaintiffs won 62% of

the contract cases.

 Fifteen percent of the defendant

winner cases involved a buyer

plaintiff countersuit, and 14%

involved a rental/lease agreement

countersuit.

 Defendants in contract cases won

an estimated $83 million in compensatory and punitive damages. The

median award amount was

$20,000. About 12% of the defendants winning damages in a

countersuit won more than

$250,000. 

 Punitive damages totalling $2.5

million were awarded to 14 defendant winners in contract trials.

Thirteen of these were decided by a

jury. 

Contract trials in which a defendant won
 

 Contract Trials and Verdicts in Large Counties, 1996 9

 In 1992 jury trials in the Nation’s 75

largest counties disposed of almost

2,200 contract cases compared to

about 1,700 in 1996. This decrease

in the overall number of jury contract

cases, however, was not statistically

significant.

 Overall, plaintiffs were more likely to

win in contract cases in 1992 (63%)

than in 1996 (56%). Among specific

types of contract cases, plaintiffs

were more successful in buyer plaintiff and rental/lease cases in 1992

compared to 1996 (not shown in

table).*

 Individuals suing other individuals in

contract disputes were more likely to

win in 1992 (69%) compared to 1996

(57%). The median final awards for

these individual plaintiff winners,

however, were similar for the two time

periods ($42,000 in 1992 and

$47,000 in 1996).

 In 1996 nonindividual plaintiffs were

just as successful whether they sued

an individual (58%) or a business

(57%). In 1992 nonindividual plaintiffs were more likely to win in contract

disputes involving individuals (82%)

compared to businesses (66%). 

 In 1996 juries in the 75 largest

counties awarded over $570 million 

to plaintiff winners in contract cases

compared to $915 million in 1992.

Comparison of 1992 and 1996 jury trial contract cases 

Note: Data on litigant pairings, plaintiff winners, and type of case were available for 99.5% of 1992 jury contract cases 

and 99.8% of 1996 jury contract cases. Data on final awards for plaintiff winners were available for 95.4% of 1992 jury 

contract cases and 97.4% of 1996 jury contract cases. 

--No cases recorded.

*Not the median but the actual amount awarded. 

a

Excludes cases with a directed verdict, cases in which the plaintiff and defendant won damages 

and cases in which the plaintiff won the liability trial. b

Plaintiff or defendant type for each case is whichever type appears first in this list: 1) hospital/medical company, 2) corporate/business 

litigants, 3) government agencies, 4) individuals. For example, any case involving a hospital defendant is categorized 

as a case with a “hospital defendant” even if there were also business, individual, and government defendants in the case. c

Business litigants include insurance companies, banks, construction companies, real estate development 

companies, service sellers, goods sellers, manufacturing companies, other businesses and organizations. d

May include government, business, and/or hospital litigants. e

1992 final award amounts are adjusted for inflation and presented in 1996 dollars.

Hospital 9 100.0 9 1,411 75 -- -- -- -- --

Business 474 65.8 293 318,190 76 367 57.2 210 225,118 152 b

Government 6 100.0 6 8,161 182 14 76.8 11 23,593 1,392

Individual 172 82.2% 133 $19,125 $23 124 57.5% 70 $10,624 $44

Nonindividuald

 versus:

Hospital 3 100.0 3 272 87 2 0.0 -- -- --

Business 109 62.0 66 42,358 280 77 62.4 45 47,750 171 c

Government 2 0.0 -- -- -- 1 100.0 1 7,710 7,710

Individual 26 57.3% 15 $2,688 $40 31 65.7% 20 $43,086 $338

Individual and nonindividuald

versus:

Hospital 30 61.4 18 6,777 100 22 63.1 13 3,828 183

Business 1,036 58.0 566 480,983 62 787 53.0 400 175,024 63 c

Government 49 45.4 22 5,509 118 59 44.6 25 7,063 141

Individual 265 69.0% 183 $29,889 $42 253 57.4% 141 $26,753 $49

Individual versus:

All contract jury trial cases 2,181 63.2% 1,314 $915,364 $62 1,736 55.5% 938 $570,550 $79

Plaintiff versus defendant (in thousands) (in thousands) b

Total Median Number

of cases

Percent

plaintiff

winnersa

Total

number 

of cases

Total Median Number

of cases

Percent

plaintiff 

winnersa

Total

number

of cases

Final awards to 

plaintiff winners 

Final awards to 

plaintiff winnerse

1992 1996

Pairings of primary litigants in contract jury trials, by plaintiff winners and award amounts

in State courts in the Nation's 75 largest counties, 1992 and 1996

*For a complete listing of final award 

and punitive damage amounts by county,

see Civil Trial Cases and Verdicts in

Large Counties, 1996, NCJ 173426. 
10 Contract Trials and Verdicts in Large Counties, 1996 

--No cases recorded. 

a

Includes “other trials” not shown in this table (cases with directed verdict, judgment 

notwithstanding the verdict, and jury trials for defaulted defendants). b

Includes only the central district of the Los Angeles County Superior Court.

Los Angeles suburban courts are not included. c

Includes only cases for Fairfield judicial district. d

Includes only cases for Hartford-New Britain judicial district.

Milwaukee, WI 69 58.8 22 45.5 46 64.4

King, WA 160 48.1 62 43.5 93 52.7

Fairfax, VA 85 64.7 24 41.7 59 74.6

Harris, TX 576 53.4 92 33.3 471 63.1

Dallas, TX 95 54.7% 66 56.1% 25 56.0%

Bexar, TX 68 42.2 24 37.5 38 46.7

Philadelphia, PA 39 59.0 29 69.0 10 30.0

Allegheny, PA 181 72.4 20 85.0 160 70.6

Franklin, OH 43 51.2 19 42.6 20 60.0

Cuyahoga, OH 110 60.6 44 45.5 66 68.2

New York, NY 96 75.0 29 72.4 61 75.4

Middlesex, NJ 28 78.6 12 75.0 15 86.7

Essex, NJ 26 38.5 16 43.8 8 25.0

Bergen, NJ 86 66.3 31 71.0 54 64.8

St. Louis, MO 73 45.2% 45 40.0% 25 60.0%

Hennepin, MN 74 58.1 36 47.2 38 68.4

Wayne, MI 62 71.0 40 70.0 16 68.8

Oakland, MI 83 48.2 37 45.9 42 52.4

Worcester, MA 18 44.4 12 41.7 6 50.0

Suffolk, MA 12 41.7 7 28.6 5 60.0

Norfolk, MA 7 42.9 5 60.0 1 0.0

Middlesex, MA 20 65.0 16 62.5 3 100.0

Essex, MA 18 61.1 11 72.7 6 33.3

Jefferson, KY 66 61.5 24 56.5 37 64.9

Marion, IN 83 83.9% 6 66.7% 77 86.0%

Dupage, IL 59 67.8 19 68.4 40 67.5

Cook, IL 84 61.3 43 62.5 35 62.9

Honolulu, HI 22 90.9 5 100.0 16 87.5

Fulton, GA 73 17.8 16 50.0 54 9.3

Palm Beach, FL 96 84.4 18 66.7 77 88.3

Orange, FL 33 75.8 16 75.0 17 76.5

Dade, FL 110 60.6 75 70.0 27 51.9

Hartford, CT 63 68.3 5 80.0 57 66.7 d

Fairfield, CT 11 72.7 4 75.0 7 71.4 c

Ventura, CA 50 50.0% 19 57.9% 31 45.2%

Santa Clara, CA 43 53.5 14 35.7 29 62.1

San Francisco, CA 55 60.0 27 63.0 24 62.5

San Bernardino, CA 14 50.0 5 40.0 9 55.6

Orange, CA 209 61.8 65 64.6 141 60.3

Los Angeles, CA 312 54.0 98 46.9 206 63.6 b

Fresno, CA 34 52.9 9 44.4 25 56.0

Contra Costa, CA 30 46.7 14 42.9 16 50.0

Alameda, CA 29 44.8 19 31.6 9 77.8

Pima, AZ 45 57.8 13 30.8 32 68.8

Maricopa, AZ 90 65.3% 61 68.8% 23 69.6%

County Number Number Number

Percent

plaintiff

winners

Percent

plaintiff

winners

Percent

plaintiff

winners

All cases Jury trials Bench trials a

Appendix A. Contract trial cases and plaintiff winners by sampled counties, 1996
 

 

 Contract Trials and Verdicts in Large Counties, 1996 11

Note: Excludes cases with missing final award amounts.

Final amount awarded includes both compensatory (reduced for 

contributory negligence) and punitive damage awards.

Eminent domain cases are not calculated among final awards 

because there is always an award; the issue is how much the 

defendant (whose property is being condemned) will receive for the property.

--No cases recorded.

*Not a median but the actual amount awarded.

a

Includes only the central district of the Los Angeles County Superior Court.

 Los Angeles suburban courts are not included. b

Includes only cases for Fairfield judicial district. c

Includes only cases for Hartford-New Britain judicial district.

Milwaukee, WI 22 6 814,667 32,652 -- -- --

King, WA 62 27 5,335,258 48,998 2 310,000 155,000

Fairfax, VA 24 8 1,470,992 21,070 -- -- --

Harris, TX 92 31 41,236,626 378,902 -- -- --

Dallas, TX 66 36 $31,140,949 $156,255 3 $7,580,000 $50,000

Bexar, TX 24 9 702,623 34,750 2 67,875 33,937

Philadelphia, PA 29 20 5,846,066 86,443 1 350,000 350,000 *

Allegheny, PA 20 16 2,561,891 27,455 1 261,606 261,606 *

Franklin, OH 19 10 1,619,465 63,000 2 500,001 250,000

Cuyahoga, OH 44 15 2,146,807 49,000 1 167,500 167,500 *

New York, NY 29 21 58,559,439 215,000 2 30,400,000 15,200,000

Middlesex, NJ 12 9 999,022 47,768 1 5,000 5,000 *

Essex, NJ 16 7 456,889 45,630 -- -- --

Bergen, NJ 31 20 5,552,513 107,405 5 756,492 156,491

St. Louis, MO 45 18 $3,800,804 $111,701 -- -- --

Hennepin, MN 36 17 695,405 20,824 1 16,910 16,910 *

Wayne, MI 40 27 13,541,118 87,516 1 1,364 1,364 *

Oakland, MI 37 16 7,759,305 32,500 -- -- --

Worcester, MA 12 4 965,039 42,642 -- -- --

Suffolk, MA 7 2 348,600 174,300 1 175,000 175,000 *

Norfolk, MA 5 3 1,855,000 80,000 -- -- --

Middlesex, MA 16 8 805,771 60,236 1 87,500 87,500 *

Essex, MA 11 5 531,929 55,000 -- -- --

Jefferson, KY 24 13 5,413,982 65,089 3 97,500 30,000

Marion, IN 6 4 $613,496 $9,044 -- -- --

Dupage, IL 19 13 615,998 22,643 3 25,000 10,000

Cook, IL 43 27 34,306,295 198,012 2 1,260,000 1,260,000 *

Honolulu, HI 5 5 5,129,038 875,000 2 800,000 400,000 a

Fulton, GA 16 8 732,544 49,218 2 340,001 170,001

Palm Beach, FL 18 12 1,672,055 27,475 -- -- --

Orange, FL 16 11 9,623,516 110,500 -- -- --

Dade, FL 75 53 60,554,345 80,284 4 329,000 87,500

Hartford, CT 5 3 124,099 47,494 -- -- -- c

Fairfield, CT 4 3 162,755 13,442 -- -- -- b

Ventura, CA 19 11 $3,712,432 $253,582 3 $718,000 $10,000

Santa Jose, CA 14 3 336,472 36,014 -- -- --

San Francisco, CA 27 17 15,795,154 311,186 2 3,500,000 1,750,000

San Bernardino, CA 5 2 989,701 494,850 -- -- --

Orange, CA 65 39 69,991,534 240,000 11 23,217,226 325,000

Los Angeles, CA 98 45 21,031,988 149,344 10 2,890,084 140,000 a

Fresno, CA 9 4 331,978 51,086 -- -- --

Contra Costa, CA 14 5 3,622,714 49,663 1 7,805 7,805 *

Alameda, CA 19 6 1,792,998 104,032 -- -- --

Pima, AZ 13 3 648,146 224,250 1 130,000 130,000 *

Maricopa, AZ 61 42 $6,058,328 $45,974 5 $308,480 $40,500

County jury trials winners award award winners award award

number of of plaintiff Total Median of plaintiff Total Median

Total Number Number

Final amount awarded to plaintiff Punitive damages awarded

Appendix B. Final and punitive damage awards for plaintiff winners in 

contract jury trials, by sampled counties, 1996
12 Contract Trials and Verdicts in Large Counties, 1996 

Note: Excludes cases with missing final award amounts. Final amount awarded includes 

both compensatory (reduced for contributory negligence) and punitive damage awards.

Eminent domain cases are not calculated among final awards because there is

always an award; the issue is how much the defendant (whose property is being

condemned) will receive for the property.

*Not a median but the actual amount awarded.

--No cases recorded.

a

Includes only the central district of the Los Angeles County Superior Court.

Los Angeles suburban courts are not included. b

Includes only cases for Fairfield judicial district. c

Includes only cases for Hartford-New Britain judicial district.

Milwaukee, WI 46 24 379,080 8,639 1 20,000 20,000 *

King, WA 93 49 8,189,214 19,611 1 30,000 30,000 *

Fairfax, VA 59 44 3,005,000 16,756 -- -- --

Harris, TX 471 258 44,427,906 24,724 34 883,064 28,601

Dallas, TX 25 14 $7,171,920 $22,296 -- -- --

Bexar, TX 38 18 1,064,745 9,649 -- -- --

Philadelphia, PA 10 3 195,000 75,000 -- -- --

Allegheny, PA 160 113 806,234 2,250 -- -- --

Franklin, OH 20 12 799,864 16,600 -- -- --

Cuyahoga, OH 66 40 919,722 17,751 2 15,000 7,500

New York, NY 61 46 11,260,617 67,924 1 124,651 124,651 *

Middlesex, NJ 15 13 576,111 6,223 1 3,016 3,016 *

Essex, NJ 8 2 21,303 10,651 -- -- --

Bergen, NJ 54 33 2,858,378 17,326 2 76,481 38,240

St. Louis, MO 25 15 $2,452,368 $63,177 -- -- --

Hennepin, MN 38 26 1,155,942 16,846 -- -- --

Wayne, MI 16 11 941,132 44,776 -- -- --

Oakland, MI 42 18 794,262 28,864 -- -- --

Worcester, MA 6 3 48,144 13,550 -- -- --

Suffolk, MA 5 3 273,326 74,941 -- -- --

Norfolk, MA 1 -- -- -- -- -- --

Middlesex, MA 3 2 193,663 96,832 1 26,700 26,700 *

Essex, MA 6 2 282,247 141,124 -- -- --

Jefferson, KY 37 24 427,166 7,546 1 5,000 5,000 *

Marion, IN 77 65 $1,349,201 $5,608 -- -- --

Dupage, IL 40 27 1,256,591 16,500 1 5,000 5,000 *

Cook, IL 35 21 1,452,742 60,900 1 50,000 50,000 *

Honolulu, HI 16 14 7,034,695 46,418 -- -- --

Fulton, GA 54 1 168,121 168,121 * -- -- --

Palm Beach, FL 77 68 4,780,756 30,934 -- -- --

Orange, FL 17 11 619,258 28,117 -- -- --

Dade, FL 27 13 6,706,394 29,360 -- -- --

Hartford, CT 57 34 1,174,517 6,484 2 22,031 11,015 c

Fairfield, CT 7 4 80,571 21,468 1 13,641 13,641 * b

Ventura, CA 31 14 $1,334,755 $63,153 -- -- --

Santa Jose, CA 29 17 2,672,817 79,413 2 115,000 57,500

San Francisco, CA 24 15 2,583,677 51,878 1 100,000 100,000 *

San Bernardino, CA 9 5 680,005 82,465 -- -- --

Orange, CA 141 85 13,633,176 49,378 6 273,725 35,000

Los Angeles, CA 206 124 23,666,143 90,789 2 191,000 191,000 * a

Fresno, CA 25 13 52,143,441 60,818 1 25,182,770 25,182,770 *

Contra Costa, CA 16 6 600,502 89,024 -- -- --

Alameda, CA 9 6 241,343 42,101 -- -- --

Pima, AZ 32 22 1,223,876 28,158 2 $190,400 $95,200

Maricopa, AZ 23 16 $534,691 $18,516 -- -- --

County bench trials winners award winners award

Median

award

number of of plaintiff Total of plaintiff Total

Number

Median

award

Total Number

Final amount awarded to plaintiff winners Punitive damages awarded to plaintiff winners

Appendix C. Final and punitive damage awards for plaintiff winners in contract bench trials, 

by sampled counties, 1996
Methodology

Disposition type definitions:

Jury trial: A trial held before and

decided by a jury of laypersons and

presided over by a judge culminating in

a verdict for the plaintiff(s) or

defendant(s).

Bench trial (non-jury trial): A trial

held in the absence of a jury and

decided by a judge culminating in a

judgment for the plaintiff(s) or

defendant(s).

Directed verdict: In a case in which

the party with the burden of proof has

failed to present a prima facie case for

jury consideration, a trial judge may

order the entry of a verdict without

allowing the jury to consider it,

because, as a matter of law, there can

be only one such verdict. 

Judgment notwithstanding the

verdict: (“JNOV” Judgment non

obstante veredicto) A judgment

rendered in favor of one party notwithstanding the finding of a verdict in favor

of the other party.

Jury trials for defaulted defendants: 

Some states make provisions for a jury

to be empaneled even if the defendants in a case fail to appear and enter

a defense. The purpose of a trial is to

decide issues such as amount of

damages. See Florida Rules of Civil

Procedure, Rule 1.500, section (e).

Contract case type definition:

Contracts: Cases which include all

allegations of breach of contract.

Specific case types include seller plaintiff (sellers of goods or services, including lenders, seek payment of money

owed to them by a buyer, including 

borrowers); buyer plaintiff (purchaser

of goods or services seeks return of

their money, recision of the contract, or

delivery of the specified goods); mortgage contract/foreclosure (foreclosures

on real property, commercial, or

residential; because the title to real

property is transferred to the lender if

the claim is successful it could be

included under real property cases);

fraud (financial damages incurred due

to intentional or negligent misrepresentation regarding a product or company;

also considered a type of tort claim, but

because it arises out of commercial

transactions, it was included under

contracts); employment discrimination

(claim against an employer for unfair

treatment or denial of normal privileges

due to race, gender, religion, age,

handicap and/or nationality); other

employment dispute (claim against an

employer for wrongful termination not

based on discrimination or by the

employer or the employee claiming

contractual failure of the other party);

rental/lease agreement; tortious interference with a commercial or contractual relationship (this tort consists of

four elements: existence of a valid

contract, defendant’s knowledge of that

contract, defendant’s intentional

procuring of breach of that contract

and damages); and other contract

claims (any contractual dispute other

than the case categories used in this

study such as partnership claims,

stockholder claims, and subrogation

issues). 

 

Source: Definitions were developed by

the National Center for State Courts

through consultation with NCSC Staff

Attorneys, law professors, and from

Black’s Law Dictionary.

Sample

The sample design for the 1996 civil

trial study was the same one used for

the 1992 civil jury study. The sample is

a 2-stage stratified sample with 45 of

the 75 most populous counties

selected at the first stage. The 75

counties were divided into 4 strata

based on civil disposition data for

1990 obtained through telephone interview with court staff in the general

jurisdiction trial courts. Stratum 1

consisted of the 14 counties with the

largest number of civil case dispositions. Every county in stratum 1 was

selected for the sample. Stratum 2

consisted of 15 counties with 12

chosen for the sample. From strata 3,

10 of the 20 counties were selected.

Nine of the 26 counties in stratum 4

were included in the sample. 

The second stage of the sample

design involved generating lists of

cases that would be subsequently

coded. Prior to drawing the 1996 case

sample, each participating jurisdiction

was asked to identify a list of cases

that had been disposed by jury trial or

bench trial between January 1, 1996

and December 31,1996. Trial cases

were to meet the definitional criteria for

jury and bench trials as defined in

Black’s Law Dictionary: (1) A jury trial

was defined as “a trial held before and

decided by a jury of laypersons and

presided over by a judge culminating in

a verdict for the plaintiff(s) or defendant(s),” and (2) A bench trial was

defined as “a trial held in the absence

of a jury and decided by a judge culminating in a judgment for the plaintiff(s)

or defendant(s).” Cases that did not

meet these definitional criteria were not

to be included in the jury and bench

lists.

The study plan was to obtain approximately 300 jury and 300 bench cases

from the court of general jurisdiction in

each of the counties selected for the

study. In courts that reported approximately 300 or less jury or bench trials,

all trials were to be coded. In courts that

reported more than 300 jury or 300

bench trials, a list of cases was to be

provided to project staff and a random

sample of 275 drawn from the jury and

bench trial case list. For jury and bench

case lists in which the case type was

known, any remaining medical malpractice, professional malpractice and product liability cases not initially selected

were to be included in the sample in

order to oversample these case types.

At the second stage of sampling for jury

cases, all tort, contract, and real

property rights cases disposed by jury

verdict between January 1, 1996 and

December 31, 1996 were selected in 39

jurisdictions. In the 3 jurisdictions where

the total number of jury cases disposed

exceeded 300 and where case type

could be identified, a random sample of

about 275 cases was drawn from a list

of tort, contract and real property jury

trials provided by the court.

 Contract Trials and Verdicts in Large Counties, 1996 13
Any remaining medical malpractice,

professional malpractice and product

liability cases not initially chosen in the

initial sample also were included. In the

3 jurisdictions where the total number

of jury cases disposed exceeded 300

and case type could not be identified, a

random sample of about 275 cases was

selected from the list of jury trials.

At the second stage of sampling for

bench cases, all tort, contract, and real

property rights cases disposed by bench

verdict between January 1, 1996 and

December 31, 1996 were selected in 41

jurisdictions. In the 1 jurisdiction where

the total number of bench cases

disposed exceeded 300 and the case

type could be identified, a random sample of about 275 cases was drawn from

a list of tort, contract and real property

bench trials. Any remaining medical

malpractice, professional malpractice

and product liability cases not initially

chosen in the random sample also were

included. In the 3 jurisdictions where

the total number of bench cases disposed exceeded 300 and case type

could not be identified, a random sample of about 275 tort, contract and real

property rights cases were selected

from the list of bench trials.

During the coding process in all sites,

it was discovered that some courts included in their list some jury and bench

trials that did not meet the study definitional criteria of a trial. These cases

that did not meet the study criteria were

excluded from the data base. By

excluding cases that did not meet the

study criteria, some jurisdictions in

which sampling was utilized have final

sample sizes of less than 275 cases.

Data on 6,713 civil jury trial cases and

2,312 civil trial bench cases that met the

study criteria were collected in the 45

courts. The final sample consisted of

9,025 tort, contract and real property

rights case disposed of by jury or bench

verdict.

Populations of jury and bench trials

In jurisdictions where second stage

case sampling was not used, the populations of jury and bench trials reported were based on applying the study

criteria in each site and excluding cases that did not meet the study definitions.

In the jurisdictions where second stage

sampling was used, the true population

of trial verdicts according to the study

definitions could not be known. It was

impossible to know the number of cases that failed to meet the definitional

criteria of a trial among the cases that

did not make it into the sample. The

true population within each of these

jurisdictions, therefore, was estimated

by applying the same rejection rate

generated from the selected sample

after it was coded. For example,

Orange County reported 340 jury trials

in 1996. A random sample of 275 cases was chosen and when coded according to study criteria produced 221 jury

trial verdicts. This translates into a rejection rate of 20% of the cases since

20% did not meet the definitional criteria

of a jury trial. Applying this rejection rate

to the original list of 374 jury trial cases

provided by the jurisdiction resulted in

an estimated population of 301 jury

trials.

Sampling error

Since the data in this report came from

a sample, a sampling error (standard

error) is associated with each reported

number. In general, if the difference

between 2 numbers is greater than

twice the standard error for that difference, there is confidence that for 95 out

of 100 possible samples a real difference exists and that the apparent difference is not simply the result of using a

sample rather than the entire population. All differences discussed in the

text of this report were statistically significant at or above the 95 percent confidence level.

Data recoding and unobtainable

information

For each sampled case, a standard

coding form was manually completed by

on-site court staff to record information

about the litigants, case type, processing time and award amounts.

Information for which data were not

available or collected included the cost

of litigation for the parties involved, as

well as for others; the actual disbursement of awards; and the number of

cases appealed.

14 Contract Trials and Verdicts in Large Counties, 1996 

This report and others from the

Bureau of Justice Statistics, as well

as graphical figures and spreadsheets, are available through the

Internet 

http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/

Data from the Civil Justice Survey of

State Courts, 1996 (ICPSR 2883)

can be obtained from the National

Archive of Criminal Justice Data at

the University of Michigan, 1-800-

999-0960. The archive can also be

accessed through the BJS website.

The Bureau of Justice Statistics 

is the statistical agency of the 

U.S. Department of Justice. 

Jan M. Chaiken, Ph.D., is director.

This BJS Bulletin presents the

second release of findings in a series

of reports from the Civil Justice

Survey of State Courts, 1996. Lea

S. Gifford, Carol J. DeFrances, and

Marika F.X. Litras wrote this report.

Kevin J. Strom provided statistical

review. Data collection was supervised by the National Center for

State Courts (NCSC); David B.

Rottman and Brian J. Ostrom were

the project co-directors. John

Goerdt, formerly with the NCSC, was

the initial project director. David B.

Rottman and Neil LaFountain of the

NCSC provided comments. Neil

LaFountain also provided data assistance. Tom Hester produced and

edited it. Jayne Robinson administered final production.

April 2000, NCJ 179451