General jury instructions in Texas are outlined in Texas’s Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 226a Instructions to Jury Panel and Jury. TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM. CODE ANN. §10 (West 2017). These rules provide an overview of what the court should tell the jury regarding the evidence that is presented during trial. Id. There are not specific instructions relating to expert witnesses, but these instructions require the jury to decide what they believe the facts are after hearing all evidence. Id. Additionally, the instructions allow the jury to decide how much weight and credibility to give to each witness’s testimony, if any. Id. Case law is more explicit and provides that the jury can choose whether to believe evidence presented by expert witnesses and what weight to give to a witness’s testimony. Burns v. State, 165 S.W.2d 196 (Tex. Crim. App. 1942). Further, it is the jury’s responsibility to weigh the evidence from all expert witnesses and decide what the proper conclusion(s) to be drawn from the testimony are. Dumas v. State, 812 S.W.2d 611 (Tex. App.1991).
Expert Witness Sample Jury Instructions in Texas
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