fair cross section requirement
fair-cross-section requirement. Constitutional law. The principle that a person’s right to an impartial jury, guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment, includes a requirement that the pool of potential jurors fairly represent the composition of the jurisdiction’s population. • The pool of potential jurors need not precisely match the composition of the jurisdiction. But the representation of each group must be fair — no group should be systematically excluded or underrepresented. A minimal disparity in a particular group’s representation, such as an absolute disparity of 10%, will not ordinarily violate this principle unless some aggravating factor exists. See DUREN TEST; ABSOLUTE DISPARITY; COMPARATIVE DISPARITY; STATISTICAL-DECISION THEORY Y. [Cases: Jury 33(1.1). C.J.S. Juries §§ 269–273, 279, 306.]
