§ 9-11-47.Jurors

Subsection (a) gives the parties control over jury size within limits: by written stipulation filed of record, they can agree to a jury with fewer members than the number statute would otherwise require. That flexibility can shorten selection and trial in cases where the parties see no need for a full panel.

Subsection (b) covers alternate jurors. The court may direct that one or two alternates be called and impaneled alongside the regular panel, and those alternates go through the identical process as principal jurors — the same method of selection, the same qualifications, the same examination and challenges, and the same oath. If a principal juror becomes unable or disqualified to serve, alternates step in, in the order they were called, with the same functions and powers as any other juror. An alternate who never replaces a principal juror can be discharged, though the court may instead keep one or more alternates in a court officer’s custody, apart from the regular jurors, until the verdict.

Calling alternates comes with one added protection for the parties: if one or two alternates are seated, each party gets one additional peremptory challenge beyond what the law otherwise allows. That extra challenge can be used only against an alternate juror, and the ordinary peremptory challenges can’t be turned against the alternates instead.