Should I do jury service?

[Juryorrun]

I’ve been summoned to do jury service. I have good reasons to be excused from it, and those same reasons would make it a right old ballache to do (caring responsibilities etc). And I would also have an almost 2 hour journey to get there, and the same back each day.

It says 10 days service on the letter, but also says it may go on longer. Is that a standard thing it always says, or is it really likely to be around the 10 day mark? If it’s going to be a lot longer than that it definitely wouldn’t be possible.

BUT…I’ve always wanted to do jury service and I’d actually like to do it. I know it probably won’t be as exciting as I’m expecting it to be, but I think it would be interesting.

So AIBU for not getting out of it when I easily could, and it will be a right PITA logistics wise?

Also I believe they ask before putting people on long term cases.

The thing is, while that's admirable in some respects, it obviously means the jury doesn't and up being a very fair cross-section of society after all.

Seems like the majority of people who’ve done it found it to be interesting and rewarding.

Yes I definitely do have grounds for being excused (checked on gov website), but I would like to do it. It will take some planning but it is within the realms of possibility. @Mariposistaaa hit the nail on the head there - I don’t often get to do something for me. My parents (age 68 and 70) have never been summoned, and both would love to do it, so I feel…lucky is probably the wrong word but you know what I mean.

I am self employed, although really not earning much at the moment. Would I be able to claim any money back other than expenses? It’s not a deal breaker if not.

One thing that does concern me a bit - if the defendant’s family/friends are there, has anyone been hassled or intimidated by them when they leave the court?

I got excused 3 times, it is very easy ( Scotland). The last time I didn't ask to be excused but ended up not having to do it anyway. There is only a small chance you'll have to do it even if you don't get excused.

OP you COULD get excused but you don’t WANT to be. You aren’t taking a big financial hit as business is slow atm. Do it. It will be a new experience for YOU.

She wants to do it!

It's hugely unfair that people are expected to sacrifice their incomes and even their businesses in order to sit on juries
@lifebeginsaftercoffee I agree with you here.
I feel that in previous generations people were generally a little more subservient /willing to differ automatically to authority and fewer of us were self employed

You can claim money from lost earnings but for a lot of people it doesn't cover their full earnings but if you aren't earning that much it should cover it.

My DH was called last year, but the dates were on our already booked holiday abroad. So he let them know as you can defer once with good reason. They deferred him to middle of Jan this year. As a self employed person who had been unable to work and earn over Christmas he sent them an email pleading hardship if he was to go ahead with it through further loss of earnings that couldn't fully be reclaimed through the expenses they provide. We also had information that indicated his estranged DB might be scheduled a trial during the period he had been selected. He had an email back to say he had been fully excused. Not sure if it was the hardship or the potential of a relative standing trial that lead to them excusing him as they didn't specify.

The issue is when you're self-employed it's not just your lost earnings for the time you're off - you could potentially lose business permanently if you're unavailable for a long period of time.

So, I'm a dog walker - if I had to close for three months so I could do jury duty, my clients would have no choice but to go elsewhere and then when I do come back to work, I'm stuffed.

https://www.gov.uk/jury-service

There's a lot of information here. You can also claim back travel & lunch (up to a certain amount)

Don't know how long ago you did it but you indeed can claim about 31p a mile for car travel and MOST big courts will reasonably pay parking unless they know you live somewhere with good public transport links.

Sorry I should have directed it at OP as she hasn't said anything about it being detrimental to her business in terms of clients but for most self employed people it wouldn't be good

@Juryorrun
I enjoyed it. It was interesting.

it’s a faff as is a break in routine.

it’s an excellent demonstration of how to run something as inefficiently as possible! (Maybe it’s only from a jurors perspective, but blimey it was shocking!)

I run my own business so ended up working evenings too to keep on top of the bare minimum. I was happy with that as I didn’t dwell on the case in the evenings as my brain was just.

it reaffirmed life choices that working in a city (& living where I do) isn’t something I’d want to do everyday.

4 days was enough. I was dismissed when the case finished. But I chased that and was told we should have been told we were dismissed and hadn’t been, we were verbally told to go back the next day, but I phoned on my way home and an hour later had got my email confirming I wasn’t needed. … glad I did!

in terms of dress code, layers seems to be the way to go!

our court was FREEZING but the jurors area was quite warm. You spent quite a bit of time stood in corridors (jury have to leave the court when they discuss a point of law) and you either stand in a draft or next to a radiator!!

id also make sure you have a coat a completely different colour to whatever you’re wearing in court. You leave the court at lunchtime time and can end up walking around Tesco buying a sandwich with the defendant and their family ! … which made me rather uncomfortable… but innocent until
proven guilty!!

I opted for brighter clothes, and a black coat.
I also tended to wear my hair up in court and down outside (started because it was windy, but liked my decision).

@ivedonejuryservice i now have visions of me in Tesco getting a sandwich with dark glasses and a false moustache 🤣. Good tips re changing appearance, thank you.

No my earnings won’t be too badly affected as I have an online shop, so I can keep it open and pack up orders in the evenings. It’s just the listing new stuff I won’t have time to do.

Car might be the way forward as the train options either get me there an hour before I need to be or arriving at court 2 mins before I need to be. If I go for the earlier option that means getting on the train at 6.30am, which I don’t really want to do. Was going to go for the later one but after a PP posted about allowing time to get through security, and being in contempt of court, I think that could be a risky strategy. It will still be a bloody long drive though, getting through Bristol at rush hour is not fun! I live quite a long way south of Bristol and the court is north of the centre, so I’ll have to go all the way through.

In that case GO FOR IT OP - nothing is holding you back really. And it sounds like you really want to do it. It is amazing how you adapt as SE when you need to.
I am SE and once had to work on-site for 10 days full time with one client - now I can't just ditch my other ones to do this. But I managed. It was hard work but got through.

id love to do it a real gruesome case as well.

Generally if it’s going to be a long case they tell you that and rescreen the jurors before appointing to a jury. For stuff within the two week window you just get out onto the jury.

I’ve done it and found it a thoroughly depressing experience. Some of the jurors I was with were out and out racists. It completely changed my opinion of the whole trial by jury system.

My mother was called once in her life, had to get the bus for a two hour journey each way, sat in the holding area for 10 days and never saw the inside of a courtroom.

I'd be really pissed off to lose two weeks of earnings to do that, lol.

I actually love the idea of jury service but it seems so impractical and chaotic for the people who are chosen.

In Scotland they ask you to call in every night after 5 pm to see if you have been selected in the ballot to be on a jury. If you have been selected then you are called to let you know how long the trail will be and can you do that time period

they also choose 5 substitutes in case there is a reason once you get there as to why you can’t take part on the jury once you see the charges and know who the defendant is

15 people on the jury so 20 people are called

@Juryorrun

"Car might be the way forward as the train options either get me there an hour before I need to be or arriving at court 2 mins before I need to be. If I go for the earlier option that means getting on the train at 6.30am, which I don’t really want to do."

As I recall you only need to get there early prior to jury selection. When I did it, courts didn't sit before 10.00 and sessions often ended mid afternoon. They also give you days off if you're not on a jury and they don't need you the following day.

@Onelifeonly thats good, it might only be the first morning I need to drive then. Or maybe I’ll stay in Bristol the night before.

If you do get out of it, would those reasons be forever reasons, meaning if you were called again you would get out of it again or not? I would think they would need you for the time that trail lasted so it could be longer. (I have never been called and would have forever reasons to get out of it if I did though, so my opinion might not be the most valid!!