Section 12.17 Objections at Trial

• Library: Civil Trial Practice 2015 Supp

A. (§12.17) Objections at Trial

An important part of jury instruction practice is the preservation of a claim of error in the instructions submitted to the jury. Not only have the appellate courts relaxed somewhat the principle that any deviation from Missouri Approved Instructions (MAI) is presumptive error, the rules require that counsel articulate both during the instruction conference and in the motion for new trial specific objections to the jury instructions in order to be able to challenge the giving of the instructions on appeal. See, e.g., Brown v. Wallace, 52 S.W.3d 21 (Mo. App. W.D. 2001) (failure to object to use of phrase “proper lookout” instead of “careful lookout” at instruction conference waived any error).

The first line of defense is the instruction conference. Hampton v. Jecman, 50 S.W.3d 897 (Mo. App. W.D. 2001). The court may have required counsel to prepare the instructions and submit them to opposing counsel before the jury instruction conference. It is not unusual, however, for counsel to see the proposed instructions for the first time at or shortly before the time comes to make objections to them on the record. This is where, once again, a thorough knowledge of the facts of the case and of the applicable law comes into play.

The duty to object arises only after the trial court has decided what instructions will be...