Painterly brass balance scale with folded paper weighing down one pan against dark green.

Original artwork, not a still

Robert Frost

A jury consists of twelve persons chosen to decide who has the better lawyer.

Behind the line

What it means

Our interpretation.

The joke replaces a jury's expected task with a competition between lawyers. Calling the better advocate the real subject of judgment gives the courtroom a cynical twist. It suggests that persuasive performance can determine an outcome that is supposed to rest on the case itself.

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