Constitution Challenge

Seventh Amendment

Name(s) ________________________________________ Date _____________

Original language:
“In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.”

Your language: Decide which word is most relevant to the first word.

1. suits
• lawsuits
• disputes
• complaints

2. common law
• laws involving paying money or fines
• laws passed by a legislature
• laws accepted because they have been decided by many different juries over and over again a certain way

3. value in controversy
• amount of money argued over
• amount of time argued over
• questionable worth

4. exceed
• be bigger than
• be equal to or bigger than
• be worth more than

5. trial by jury
• the case is heard by a jury
• the case is decided upon by a jury
• the case is public

6. shall be preserved
• left intact
• will not be revoked
• it’s there and you get to use it

7. no fact tried by a jury
• anything already decided by an earlier court
• anything already heard by an earlier court
• anything already accepted by an earlier court

8. re-examined
• put on trial again
• looked at again
• what was decided can’t be changed

9. than according
• except according
• unless it is according
• following the

Your words

Amendment Worksheets (PDF File)