A. At any time during the trial, the court may instruct the jury on the law applicable to any issue in the case. B. After the trial of the case and the presentation of all the evidence and arguments, the court shall instruct the jurors on the law applicable to the cause submitted to them. The court shall reduce such instructions to writing. The court shall further instruct the jury that it may take with it or have sent to it a written copy of all instructions and charges and any object or document received in evidence when a physical examination thereof is required to enable the jury to reach its verdict. C. This charge shall be in writing and available to the parties and to jurors in their deliberations.
Art. 1792.Charge to the Jury
Book II. Ordinary Proceedings · Title V. Trial · Chapter 7. Jury Trial · Last amended 1997 · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 1792 lets the court instruct the jury on the law at any point during trial, requires a full written charge on the applicable law after closing arguments, and ensures that written charge, along with any evidentiary object needing physical examination, is available to the jury during deliberations.
Full Text of Art. 1792
Amendment History
Acts 1983, No. 534, §7; Acts 1997, No. 668, §1.
Plain-English Summary
Article 1792 gives the trial court flexibility about when to instruct the jury on the law, while pinning down what must happen at the end of trial. Paragraph A lets the court instruct on the law applicable to any issue at any time during the trial, not only at the close of the case. Paragraph B then requires the main event: after the evidence and the parties' arguments are finished, the court must instruct the jurors on the law that governs the case submitted to them, and that charge has to be reduced to writing.
The written charge is not just for the record. Article 1792 directs the court to further instruct the jury that it may take, or have sent to it, a written copy of all the instructions and charges, along with any object or document in evidence that requires physical examination to reach a verdict. Paragraph C reinforces the point: the charge must be in writing and available both to the parties and to the jurors during their deliberations, so no one is relying on memory of what the judge said out loud.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the judge instruct the jury before the trial ends?
Yes. Article 1792(A) lets the court give instructions on the law applicable to any issue at any time during the trial.
Must the final jury charge be in writing?
Yes. The court must reduce the instructions to writing and make that written charge available to the parties and the jurors.
Can jurors take the written instructions into deliberations?
Yes. The jury may take, or have sent to it, a written copy of all instructions and charges, along with evidentiary objects needing physical examination.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
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