At the close of the evidence or at such earlier time during the trial as the court reasonably directs, any party may file written requests that the court instruct the jury on the law as set forth in the requests. The court shall inform counsel of its proposed action upon the requests prior to their arguments to the jury, but the court shall instruct the jury after the arguments are completed. No party may assign as error the giving or the failure to give an instruction unless he objects thereto before the jury retires to consider its verdict, stating distinctly the matter to which he objects and the grounds for his objection. Opportunity shall be given to make the objection out of the hearing of the jury.
Rule 51.Instructions to jury: Objection
Group VI: Trials · Not amended since adoption on record · Last verified July 13, 2026
In one sentenceRule 51 lets any party submit written requests for jury instructions, requires the judge to tell counsel how those requests will be handled before closing arguments, and requires a party to object to any instruction given or refused before the jury retires in order to preserve the issue for appeal.
Full Text of Rule 51
Notes
Note: This is the language of Federal Rule 51. This Rule, as does the Federal Rule, requires the court to inform the lawyers of its proposed action on their requested instructions prior to argument. The language preserves Code § 15-27-100, opportunity to object to charge or request additional charge out of presence of the jury, and present Circuit Court Rule 11.
Plain-English Summary
Rule 51 covers how a South Carolina civil case gets its jury charge. Any party can submit written requests asking the court to instruct the jury on specific points of law, either at the close of the evidence or earlier if the court sets an earlier deadline. Before the lawyers stand up to argue the case to the jury, the court has to tell them how it plans to handle each requested instruction — which requests it will give, which it will refuse, and in what form. That sequencing matters: knowing the court's rulings on jury instructions before closing arguments lets each side tailor its argument to the law the jury will be told to apply, rather than arguing blind. The court still delivers the actual charge to the jury only after both sides have finished their arguments.
The rule's second half is about preserving error. A party can't complain on appeal that the court gave a wrong instruction, or should have given one it didn't, unless that party objected before the jury retired to deliberate. The objection has to be specific — it must state distinctly which instruction is being challenged and the grounds for the challenge — so a vague or general objection won't preserve the issue. The rule also guarantees that this objection can be made outside the jury's hearing, so counsel isn't forced to air disputes about the charge in front of the jurors who will apply it.
Frequently Asked Questions
When must jury instruction requests be submitted in a South Carolina civil trial?
At the close of the evidence, or earlier if the court reasonably sets an earlier deadline for written requests.
Does the judge have to tell the lawyers how requested instructions will be handled before closing arguments?
Yes. Rule 51 requires the court to inform counsel of its proposed action on the requests before they argue the case to the jury, though the court delivers the actual charge only after arguments finish.
What does a party need to do to preserve an objection to a jury instruction?
Object before the jury retires to consider its verdict, and state distinctly both the specific instruction being challenged and the grounds for the objection. A general or untimely objection won't preserve the issue for appeal.
Can a party object to a jury instruction outside the jury's presence?
Yes. Rule 51 guarantees an opportunity to make the objection out of the jury's hearing.
What happens if a party never objects to a flawed jury instruction before the jury retires?
That party generally cannot assign the instruction as error on appeal, since Rule 51 conditions appellate review of jury-charge errors on a timely, specific objection at trial.
Source & verification. Rule text, official Notes, and amendment
history are reproduced verbatim from the South Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure,
adopted by the Supreme Court of South Carolina. Last verified July 13, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as: jury instructions South Carolina civil caserequest to charge juryobjecting to jury charge South Carolinapreserving error jury instruction appealrequests for jury instructions deadline