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Legal matters

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Original poster

Help with Jury Service...

34 replies

PocketRocket123 · 22/09/2024 18:46

I was asked to do jury service Feb 2024 but due to no childcare for my young children, I deferred it for a year. I am still in the same situation and panicking about it as I have no option for childcare (losing sleep and worrying). My husband works away alot, sometimes away mon-fri and back on weekends and we moved away from family. Will I be able to be excused?

OP posts:

Invisimamma · 26/09/2024 23:43

Whaleandsnail6 · 25/09/2024 16:01

How old are your children?

I did jury service years ago and I was expected to register them in before and after school club and then claim the costs of childcare back. Which I was able to do.

Mine were primary school aged so not tiny, not sure on the rules if they are under school age.

Our before and after school club has a five year waiting list so that wouldn't work. It's also 8am -6pm, and the court is 30-45 mins away in good traffic so it wouldn't provide all the care you need anyway.

My dp has to give annual leave requests a year upfront so if I'm called for jury service we're fucked really, I have nobody else to help. I also work myself and I would lose earnings as the court expenses are way less than what I earn.

exprecis · 27/09/2024 09:13

Thing is that if we only had people on juries when there was zero inconvenience to them, our juries would not exactly be representative.

I do think it should be better compensated but there we are.

If you're self employed in particular it's worth looking at taking out legal insurance so that if you're called, you can claim loss of earnings and greater expenses.

If you have childcare issues, you can defer as the OP has done but the point of deferring is to give you time to find a way to do it for two weeks

Movinghouseatlast · 27/09/2024 09:56

Invisimamma · 26/09/2024 23:43

Show quote history

Yes, that's the same for everyone, you have to do it. It's not fair of course, but it's not fair for everyone.

I earned £300 a day when I did it and was given £65 a day. I lost a lot of money.

This time I've had to pay someone to do my job and also not get paid myself. But it's the law so I'm doing it.

Emsie1987 · 27/09/2024 10:04

It isn't fair but you can get out of it. If your childcare doesn't start until say 8am and you need to be at court for 9am and your journey is 90 minutes it's impossible. Yes you can ask family Members to help but they may also work. I got excused four years ago and still have not been called up. If I was again I would still defer and state child care opening times do not allow me to make it to court on time I will be late.

It may be unfair on other people who do, do it. And it is our civic duty but you have plenty of years to do it again when situation with kids have got older.

unmemorableusername · 27/09/2024 12:24

I thought you meant babies. Put your school aged DCs in after school!

You don't have no childcare you just don't want to pay for it.

Surely this will be covered in expenses?

ByQuaintAzureWasp · 27/09/2024 15:21

Husband will have to.take holiday or parental leave.

Bluevelvetsofa · 27/09/2024 17:12

When I did it ages ago, the court started at about 10am and finished at about 4pm.

BananaSpanner · 27/09/2024 17:16

Your children have two parents, the other one needs to be responsible for childcare that fortnight.

ThatRoseCrow · 22/02/2026 21:04

For those that have done the jury service and had to claim back the extra childcare related expenses, what proof has been asked for this? Just working out what I need to get from my childminder to show this?

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