Article by Holly Olarczuk-Smith, Esq.
On November 2, 2026, the Ohio Supreme Court, in Estate of Price v. Kidney Care Specialists, L.L.C. (Slip Opinion No. 2026-Ohio-4270), determined that a trial judge must consider all the answers from a prospective juror during jury selection and that mandatory disqualification applies when bias or unwillingness to follow the law is shown to be valid.
The case served as an opportunity for the Ohio Supreme Court to explain the proper standard for reviewing for cause juror challenges. Ohio law requires automatic disqualification “when a prospective juror’s answers disclose his or her inability to be a fair and impartial juror or unwillingness to follow the law as given by the trial court.” Price at ¶44. “[A] trial court does not have discretion to deny such a challenge.” Price at ¶44. “Instead, an appellate court must review the trial court’s decision about the challenge’s validity to determine whether the challenge was supported by competent, credible evidence.” Price at ¶41. “Here, the trial court’s decisions denying [plaintiff’s] challenges to exclude prospective jurors … for cause …were supported by competent, credible evidence in the record.” Price at ¶41.
Furthermore, “the trial court must consider the prospective juror’s answers over the course of voir dire” because “a prospective juror’s answers to questions asked later in the jury-selection process may demonstrate that the prospective juror will be fair and impartial and follow the law as instructed by the court.” Price at ¶39
The opinion can be found here.