Meaning & use
sequester jury
Last updated
Meaning
verbtransitivelegallaw
To keep a jury together and away from the public during a trial so they are not influenced.
Grammar: Takes an object: sequester the jury. Often used in the passive: the jury was sequestered.
Patterns
- sequester a jury
- sequester the jury during a trial
- the jury was sequestered
The judge decided to sequester the jury during the high-profile murder trial.
In some countries, juries are sequestered only in exceptional cases.
If the jury is sequestered, members stay in a hotel and cannot read the news.
Word forms
| third person singular | sequesters a jury |
|---|---|
| past tense | sequestered a jury |
| past participle | sequestered a jury |
| -ing form | sequestering a jury |
Common combinations
- sequester a jury
- The court may sequester a jury when publicity is intense.
- sequester the jury for the weekend
- The judge ordered the bailiff to sequester the jury for the weekend.
- a sequestered jury
- A sequestered jury is isolated from outside contact.
- ask the judge to sequester the jury
- Defense lawyers asked the judge to sequester the jury.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
- sequestration noun
- The act of sequestering a jury or separating something.
- sequestered adjective
- Kept apart from others, especially a jury.
Commonly confused: sequester jury or sequester? sequester jury or sequestrate?
sequester jury vs sequester
As a general verb, sequester can mean to take something away or set it apart; the phrase sequester a jury is the legal use.
sequester jury vs sequestrate
Sequestrate is mainly a British legal word for taking control of property, not for isolating a jury.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'sequester jury' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Sequester the jury' means the judge keeps the jury away from outside contact. Option 0 follows this pattern. Option 1 reverses the roles, option 2 uses the wrong preposition, and option 3 uses the wrong form of the verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sequester jury”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.