805.13.Jury instructions; note taking; form of verdict.
Ch. 805: Trials · Last amended 1987 · Last verified July 15, 2026
Full Text of Section 805.13
Official Notes
Judicial Council Note, 1986: Sub. (2) (b) is amended to provide that preliminary instructions may include a description of the nature of the case, what constitutes evidence and what does not, guidance regarding the burden of proof and the credibility of witnesses, and directions not to discuss the case until deliberations begin.
Sub. (4) is amended to required that the court provide the jury one written copy of its instructions regarding the burden of proof. [Re Order eff. 7-1-86]
Plain-English Summary
Once the jury is sworn, Section 805.13(1) requires every statement or comment the judge makes to the jury, or in its presence, about the case to be on the record. Section 805.13(2) then has the court decide whether jurors may take notes: if it authorizes note-taking, the court instructs jurors they may take written notes except during opening statements and closing arguments, stresses the confidentiality of those notes, and ensures they are collected and destroyed after the verdict; if the court does not authorize note-taking, it has to state its reasons on the record. The court can also give additional preliminary instructions on the nature of the case, what counts as evidence, the burden of proof, witness credibility, and the instruction not to discuss the case before deliberations, disclosing those instructions to the parties in advance so either side can object or propose its own.
Section 805.13(3) requires the court to hold a conference with counsel, outside the jury’s presence, at the close of the evidence and before arguments, where counsel can file written motions on jury instructions and verdict questions. The court tells counsel on the record what it proposes to do, and counsel has to object to the proposed instructions or verdict with particularity on the record; failing to object at that conference waives any error in what was proposed.
Section 805.13(4) requires the jury to receive one complete written set of instructions covering the burden of proof and the substantive law, given before or after closing arguments, and failing to object to a variance between the instructions given and those proposed does not itself waive error. Once the jury has retired to deliberate, Section 805.13(5) lets the court reinstruct the jury on all or part of what was already given, or provide supplementary instructions as it sees fit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can jurors take notes during a Wisconsin civil trial?
Only if the court authorizes it after the jury is sworn. If the court does not authorize note-taking, Section 805.13(2)(a)2. requires it to state its reasons on the record.
What happens to jurors’ notes after the verdict?
The court ensures the notes are promptly collected and destroyed after the jury has rendered its verdict.
What is the instruction and verdict conference?
Under Section 805.13(3), it is a conference the court holds with counsel outside the jury’s presence, at the close of evidence and before arguments, where counsel can file written motions on jury instructions and verdict questions and must object to the court’s proposed instructions or verdict with particularity on the record.
What happens if I do not object to a proposed jury instruction at that conference?
Failure to object at the conference constitutes a waiver of any error in the proposed instructions or verdict.
Can the judge instruct the jury again after it has already retired to deliberate?
Yes. Section 805.13(5) lets the court reinstruct the jury as to all or any part of the instructions previously given, or give supplementary instructions as it deems appropriate.
Amendment History
History: Sup. Ct. Order, 67 Wis. 2d 585, 703 (1975); 1975 c. 218; 1979 c. 128; 1981 c. 358; Sup. Ct. Order, 130 Wis. 2d xi (1987).