Right to Be Judged by Your Peers Made Possible by Jurors

Every year in California:

• Roughly 10 million people are summoned for jury serviced, or 1 in 4 people statewide
• More than 4.5 million people complete jury service, either in-person, on call, or on standby
• Around 70% of prospective jurors who arrive in person complete their service in one day
• Nearly 100,000 people are sworn in as trial jurors
   

In 1998, the California Legislature designated the second full week in May to honor the contributions of citizens who devote their time and effort to "making the cherished right of trial by jury a reality and to raise awareness about their contribution to our courts."

The Judicial Council of California and the state’s trial courts use Juror Appreciation Week to recognize the sacrifice people make in taking time away from their lives, families, and jobs to fulfill one of the most important duties in our democracy—serving as a juror in a court of law.

Making the Jury System Better for Jurors
In addition to Juror Appreciation Week, the California courts show their appreciation for jurors all year round. Following are some recent statewide initiatives to improve jury service in California:

• Mileage Reimbursement Increase: New legislation allows jurors to claim the mileage reimbursement rate of $0.34 per mile for travel both to and from court, doubling the amount individuals can receive—the legislation also authorizes courts to partner with local public transit agencies for low-cost or no-cost roundtrip transportation during jury service.
   
• Raising Juror Pay: A pilot program in seven superior courts to see if increases to juror pay improves juror diversity and participation, raised juror’s daily compensation from $15 per day to $100 per day, and increased the mileage reimbursement rate from $0.34 to $0.67 per mile roundtrip.
   
• Using Zelle in Place of Paper Check: The Stanislaus Superior Court has been participating in a pilot project to test the feasibility of paying juror per dimes using an e-payment platform through Zelle— shortening the time for jurors to get paid at the conclusion of their service, as well as reducing administrative costs for the court.
   
• On-Call Options for Jury Service: Courts continue to increase the use of telephone standby and on-call options for jury service—in many instances, individuals can check the night or even the week before to check if they will be asked to come to court in person.
   
• Staggered Reporting Times: Courts now use staggered reporting times for jurors, such as 8:00am, 10:00am, 1:00pm, or 2:00pm—this system recognizes individual jurors' schedules and helps reduce the lines of people checking in for duty at once.
   
• Jury Portals: Courts continue to improve their online jury portals where individuals can check dates of service, request postponements and excusals, and sign up for reminders—additional features include the ability to contact jury department staff with concerns, get information about court procedures, and obtain proof of jury service for employers.
   
• New Juror Orientation Videos: Updated orientation videos shown to prospective jurors and available online, explain how the jury system works, what jurors can expect, and how implicit bias can affect the process—the videos have been downloaded more than 60,000 times and viewed in courts by more than 6,000,000 jurors.

Additional Improvements to Jury Service Over the Years
Following are a few more ways California courts have made the civic right and obligation of jury service more convenient for its citizens:

• Model Juror Summons: All 58 superior courts in California reference the model summons to ensure their jury service summons is understandable.
   
• One Day or One Trial Jury Service:  If not chosen for a jury panel after one day of service at the courthouse, a juror’s service is done for at least one year—if you are selected to serve on a jury, after the trial is over your service is also completed for at least a year or longer.
   
• Plain Language Jury Instructions: Plain language civil and criminal jury instructions accurately convey the law using language that is understandable to jurors.
   

Additional Resources for Learning About Jury Service

• Jury Handbook
• Court and Community pamphlet on how to respond to your juror summons
• Guide to Jury Deliberations
• Jury Service Stress guide
• Information for Employers on benefits of continuing to pay employees during their jury service

More information about jury service