Trial by jury is a fundamental right in the United States, enshrined in the Bill of Rights. But without citizens who are willing to participate as jurors, jury trials cannot exist. Serving as a juror is thus an important civic duty.  

 

Jury duty is a mandatory obligation for most people who are over the age of 18 (and meet other requirements to serve, which vary by jurisdiction). An employee who is summoned to potentially serve as a juror in a judicial proceeding will need leave from work. Every HR department and manager should understand the basics of jury duty leave and how to administer employee leave requests related to jury service.

 

The steps below will assist an employer with correctly managing employee requests for leave to serve on a jury.

 

 

It is important for an employer to understand the basics about jury duty. When an employee requests leave to potentially serve on a jury, a knowledgeable employer will recognize a legitimate request from a questionable one.   

 

A jury is a group of individuals that listens to evidence and decides the outcome of a case. The number of jurors, service requirements, and selection process may differ based on the type of jury and jurisdiction:

 

• Juries hear case in both criminal prosecutions and in civil lawsuits;
• Grand juries, which decide whether there is enough evidence to charge someone with a crime; and petit juries, or trial juries, which consider the facts and render a verdict;
• Juries serve in federal courts, county courts, municipal courts, and sometimes other types of courts (like juvenile or probate).

 

All jury service is mandatory. An employee can face severe consequences, including fines and arrest, for failing to appear in response to a jury summons. For this reason alone, an employer should never pressure an employee to ignore a jury summons.

 

Until an employee is officially selected to sit on a jury in a legal proceeding, they are a potential juror only. Jury selection for trial juries occurs in stages, and every jurisdiction's processes are different, but in general:  

 

• Potential jurors come from a list that a court compiles from other lists (e.g., voter registration, driver license, etc.). Juror eligibility requirements, as well as those who can be excused from jury service, are generally set by law in the relevant jurisdiction.
• The court mails a jury summons to a certain number of potential jurors, ordering them to appear at court on a certain date, at a certain time, to participate in the jury selection process (or sometimes, to call the court to determine if they need to report). Prospective jurors may be on call for one or more weeks.
• During the jury selection process, the attorneys representing the parties in the case (and sometimes the judge) question the potential jurors to determine whether they can be fair and impartial. Potential jurors are either selected to serve or dismissed.
• Selected jurors serve for days, weeks, or even months, depending on the legal proceeding, but one to three days of service is common.
• Potential jurors and/or selected jurors may receive a small stipend for their service and a summary of dates served.  

 

An employer should be able to recognize a jury summons and have a general understanding of jury selection processes in its jurisdiction(s). Many courts offer information for jurors and employers online. An employer may be able to find an example of a jury summons, information for employers, and frequently asked questions for jurors from its local courts. State and local bar associations also often provide helpful information about jury service to the public.

 

Federal law protects employees called for federal jury service. Almost every state, the District of Columbia, and a few localities also have laws protecting employees who serve on juries, but the specifics vary:

 

• Jury duty laws generally either explicitly require an employer to excuse an employee from work for jury service or prohibit an employer from retaliating against an employee who serves. Either way, the idea is the same - an employer must provide employees with leave for jury service without penalty or retaliation of any kind.
• Most jury duty laws cover all employers and all employees, but some have specific employer coverage and employee eligibility requirements. 
• The laws of many jurisdictions require an employee to provide reasonable notice of and documentation supporting the need for leave, or permit an employer to ask for proof of service. 
• Some jurisdictions prohibit employers from requiring employees to use their vacation, sick time, or other paid leave while serving on a jury.

 

A minority of jurisdictions require an employer to pay an employee during jury service, but at least twelve currently require some sort of compensation. Even if not mandated, an employer may wish to consider paying its employees during jury duty leave. Court-paid stipends are typically low, and some employees may experience financial hardship during an unpaid jury duty leave. An employer must also remember that it must pay an exempt employee for any work performed during a workweek, including a workweek spent on jury duty, regardless of its policy with respect to paying non-exempt employees during jury duty leave.

 

It is important for an employer to know and understand the specific requirements of the jury duty law in its jurisdiction. For an employer operating in multiple jurisdictions, it is imperative to know the law in each one and decide whether to apply the same rules across the board for ease.

 

 

An employer should have a clearly defined process for requesting and granting employees time off to serve on a jury. A good process makes it easy for employees to request leave and helps an employer timely and consistently manage leave requests.

 

First, an employer should determine who will administer jury duty leave. This might be an employee's immediate supervisor or an employer’s HR representative.

 

Next, an employer should decide how it will accept employee requests for jury duty leave. Employers may, depending on their capabilities, require employees to give verbal notice, complete a written request form, or submit an electronic request via an online platform. An employer should also determine whether it will require supporting documentation for the leave and/or compensation.

 

Finally, an employer should appoint a specific individual with responsibility for communicating with an employee regarding their leave request, approval, and return to work. The designated contact should document all communications with the employee regarding their leave.

 

 

Even if an employee serves on a jury for a relatively short period of time, their work may accumulate, causing delays and impacting the work of other employees. This issue may be even more challenging if an employee is responsible for a particularly crucial aspect of the business or is the only person doing the work in question. 

 

An employer cannot plan for every contingency. However, a strategic (and realistic) employer understands that requests for jury duty leave will come its way at some point, and plans for those times before they create logjams. As part of that planning, an employer can:

 

• Figure out how to spread out the work during a jury duty leave;
• Determine what can wait until an employee returns;
• Designate "backups" for certain critical tasks; and 
• Depending on the length of jury service, determine if temporary support is an option.

 

A bit of planning may help an employer to save time and energy and avoid panic when employees are away serving their civic duty.

 

An employee should know what to do when they are either dismissed during jury selection or after they complete their service. An employee should have clear instructions on when they must report to work before starting or following dismissal or completion of service.

 

For example, if the employee completes their service halfway through their regular shift, the employee should know whether they need to return to work for the rest of that shift or report to work for their next regular shift. An employer should note that the laws of some jurisdictions dictate how soon an employer can require an employee to return to work following completion of service.

 

Additionally, an employee should know how to submit any required paperwork supporting their jury duty service and any court-paid stipends.

 

 

An employer should have a written policy that outlines the employer's responsibilities and the employee's obligations with respect to jury duty leave. The policy should, of course, align with applicable law. An effective jury duty policy should: