Rule 50.Judgment as a Matter of Law in Jury Trials; Alternative Motion for New Trial; Conditional Rulings.

Once a party has been fully heard on an issue at a jury trial, and there's no legally sufficient evidentiary basis for a reasonable jury to rule for that party on it, the court may resolve the issue against that party and grant judgment as a matter of law on any claim or defense that depends on a favorable finding on that issue. Such a motion can be made any time before the case goes to the jury and must specify the judgment sought and the grounds for it. If the court doesn't grant a motion for judgment as a matter of law made at the close of all the evidence, the case is treated as submitted to the jury subject to the court later deciding the legal questions the motion raised; the moving party can then renew the request within 10 days after judgment, alone or paired with a motion for a new trial under Rule 59, and the court may let the verdict stand, order a new trial, or direct judgment as a matter of law, whether or not the jury returned a verdict.

If the court grants a renewed motion for judgment as a matter of law, it must also rule conditionally on any pending new-trial motion, specifying whether it would be granted if the judgment is later vacated or reversed; that conditional ruling doesn't affect the judgment's finality, and if the judgment is reversed on appeal, the conditionally granted new trial proceeds unless the appellate court orders otherwise, while a conditionally denied new trial can still be challenged by the appellee. If the court denies the motion for judgment as a matter of law instead, the prevailing party may, as appellee, argue for a new trial if the appellate court finds the trial court erred in denying the motion, and the appellate court isn't precluded from awarding a new trial or sending that question back to the trial court.