The Constitution includes trial by jury for the third time in the Seventh Amendment. It protects the right to a jury trial in civil cases, those deciding disputes between private parties over noncriminal matters, such as personal injuries or contracts. Criminal cases are those in which the government punishes individuals for committing crimes. The Seventh Amendment also limits a judge’s power to overturn factual decisions by a jury, which could otherwise render a jury’s power meaningless. Some Americans believe that, in an age of increasingly complex litigation, a civil jury is an incompetent artifact that actually endangers due process of law. Others argue that trial by jury, in both civil and criminal cases, ensures that the American people participate directly in self-government.