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Rule 38.02 – Waiver

May 13, 2021 | Civil Procedure, Minnesota

In actions arising on contract, and by permission of the court in other actions, any party thereto may waive a jury trial by:

(a) failing to appear at the trial;
(b) written consent, by the party or the party’s attorney, filed with the court administrator; or
(c) oral consent in open court, entered in the minutes.

Neither the failure to file any document requesting a jury trial nor the failure to pay a jury fee shall be deemed a waiver of the right to a jury trial.

Minn. R. Civ. P. 38.02

Amended effective March 1, 1994.
Advisory Committee Comment–1993 Amendments
The committee is of the opinion that waiver of the right to a jury trial should not be found from inaction or failure to pay a jury fee. The amendment, coupled with the abolition of the note of issue, should obviate any confusion or inadvertent waiver of the constitutionality protected right to a jury trial. See Schweich v. Ziegler, Inc., 463 N.W.2d 722 (Minn. 1991).