Taking time off work, attending court, hanging around for hours while jury selection takes place, being told you can leave. Massive waste of time. That was my experience anyway. Shame as it was a juicy murder case.
The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
I am not sure. You have no chance.
unless you want to spend days/weeks of potentially good summer weather confined in stuffy waiting/court/jury rooms, with people you increasingly dislike, restraining the growing urge to kill, and that's just the jurors...
respond explaining that because [professional reasons/whatever/blah blah blah] please can they defer your jury duty until october/whenever
I never have and being self employed i hope I never do. Not wanting to brag but my day rate is quite a bit over £65 and I don't relish the idea of paying out the equivalent of a decent holiday for a week of jury service
Taking time off work, attending court, hanging around for hours while jury selection takes place, being told you can leave. Massive waste of time. That was my experience anyway. Shame as it was a juicy murder case.
Largely this. Spent an hour hanging around Croydon magistrates Court for a week or so. Only heard one case which was an alleged sexual assault on a minor. And while hanging around waiting they had no wifi...
"I spent most of my money on birds, booze and fast cars: the rest of it I just squandered." [George Best]
Does anyone have any idea of how often it runs over 2 weeks? I need to get my bloomin motorbike licence sorted around that time too!!🤯😡
In mine there was a trial likely to run long and they warned us and we were allowed to ask the judge to be excused. No idea if that's standard.
It did make me wonder about who would be up for being on longer trials and why they don't have anything better to do.
Boomers innit, beats watching Murder She Wrote and all those ads for funeral insurance. Basically the sort of people you wouldn't want on a jury if you found yourself accused of something
Does anyone have any idea of how often it runs over 2 weeks? I need to get my bloomin motorbike licence sorted around that time too!!🤯😡
just ask them to defer it a few months, i've done that every time, it's a perfectly normal thing to do - deferment is distinct from being excused, but if there's good reason that can be done too
from memory, the officers always ask if a long trial would be a problem for you when you first attend, most cases are short
my experience is there were always more jurors than needed, hence the hours/days in the waiting room, after you've done 2-3 cases they may say don't come back, that could happen in the first week, longest one i was on lasted two days (guilty as hell)
afaik claiming you're biased would have to wait until you're in court for the jury vetting prior to being sworn in, saying it in front of the judge at that point wouldn't be wise
I can't really defer it because I'm starting something in September. (It's too late now anyway). I tried to get out of it by saying I work in a cafe directly outside the court (which is...not untrue) but that didn't cut it.
The combination of lack of earnings, plus the loss of 2 weeks study is a proper barsteward! I was hoping they might let me sit on a laptop whilst waiting around but it doesn't sound much like that's the case...
We're in danger of confusing passion with incompetence
- @ddraver
I can't really defer it because I'm starting something in September. (It's too late now anyway). I tried to get out of it by saying I work in a cafe directly outside the court (which is...not untrue) but that didn't cut it.
The combination of lack of earnings, plus the loss of 2 weeks study is a proper barsteward! I was hoping they might let me sit on a laptop whilst waiting around but it doesn't sound much like that's the case...
even if they decline excused service, you can still ask for a deferral up to 12 months...
laptop in the waiting room was ok when i last did it, might be wifi at some, otherwise phone hotspot would give you connectivity, you'll need to leave it in a locker when in court/jury room
Does anyone have any idea of how often it runs over 2 weeks? I need to get my bloomin motorbike licence sorted around that time too!!🤯😡
In mine there was a trial likely to run long and they warned us and we were allowed to ask the judge to be excused. No idea if that's standard.
It did make me wonder about who would be up for being on longer trials and why they don't have anything better to do.
Boomers innit, beats watching Murder She Wrote and all those ads for funeral insurance. Basically the sort of people you wouldn't want on a jury if you found yourself accused of something
What about the sort of people who can spend half the day posting posting stuff on a bike forum?
"I spent most of my money on birds, booze and fast cars: the rest of it I just squandered." [George Best]
I got called up and ended up on a murder trial, it was scheduled for two weeks but lasted about 7 days, the judge released us after the 7. Legally we coul dhave been forced to stay for the 10 days but the judge presiding had authority to dismiss us.
I quite enjoyed it, there is an amount of sitting around but it is interesting.
You get a lunch allowance to use in the court canteen or about £6 if you choose to eat out.
Day 1 most people go in a suit, by day three its more relaxed, smart casual would be my advice (as it can get stuffy).
Day 1, take a book/kindle/laptop as selection can be quite a lengthy process.
I ended up as foreman so pronounced the chap in dock GUILTY!
I was called up to do jury duty at the Old Bailey a few years back. A couple of boring mornings waiting for selection followed by three weeks of a murder trial. Be careful if you want to be excused as some judges are accommodating and some see it as your duty. I swerved a 4 week trial as I had a holiday booked, but on the next selection the judge insisted a woman took part, so when I was selected for mine I took it just in case the next was a fraud trial. There was a jury from a fraud trial we used to see in the cafe and they were 4 months into a six month trial.
Never been called on (🤞). I don't understand how 'normal' people can be expected to give up weeks, or months in that example above, of their lives to just sit there like dummies, say nothing, do nothing but listen to words, that they in all probability don't understand if it's a fraud trial or suchlike.
I've been self employed a chunk of my life. Why should I be expected to take a financial hit as well?
I'm lucky as my employer pays my wages whilst on jury service as normal then deducts the 60 something a day I can claim back so I'm not in pocket and their not out of pocket for the full amount. Have to agree though if self employed or high salaried and only partial payback is not good. However you can get out of it if you can prove its a big financial burden or it goes on over the expected 2wk period.
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That was my experience anyway. Shame as it was a juicy murder case.
I am not sure. You have no chance.
- @ddraver
unless you want to spend days/weeks of potentially good summer weather confined in stuffy waiting/court/jury rooms, with people you increasingly dislike, restraining the growing urge to kill, and that's just the jurors...
respond explaining that because [professional reasons/whatever/blah blah blah] please can they defer your jury duty until october/whenever
Judge ultimately chucked it out due to lack of evidence and apologised for wasting all our time.
Cube Attain
I have only been called once, was thirty years ago, one of the cases was particularly unpleasant.
Not wanting to brag but my day rate is quite a bit over £65 and I don't relish the idea of paying out the equivalent of a decent holiday for a week of jury service
- @ddraver
It did make me wonder about who would be up for being on longer trials and why they don't have anything better to do.
Cube Attain
I've never been called and neither has my wife. My mother got called up and had days of sitting around before getting put on some really low end case.
from memory, the officers always ask if a long trial would be a problem for you when you first attend, most cases are short
my experience is there were always more jurors than needed, hence the hours/days in the waiting room, after you've done 2-3 cases they may say don't come back, that could happen in the first week, longest one i was on lasted two days (guilty as hell)
afaik claiming you're biased would have to wait until you're in court for the jury vetting prior to being sworn in, saying it in front of the judge at that point wouldn't be wise
The combination of lack of earnings, plus the loss of 2 weeks study is a proper barsteward! I was hoping they might let me sit on a laptop whilst waiting around but it doesn't sound much like that's the case...
- @ddraver
https://www.gov.uk/jury-service/delaying-or-being-excused-from-jury-service
hints and tips here...
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/228867/9780108508400.pdf
laptop in the waiting room was ok when i last did it, might be wifi at some, otherwise phone hotspot would give you connectivity, you'll need to leave it in a locker when in court/jury room
Got called again in January this year only to get a letter cancelling it two weeks later.
Now been called again for early June as has one of my team. Thankfully at different courts.
I quite enjoyed it, there is an amount of sitting around but it is interesting.
You get a lunch allowance to use in the court canteen or about £6 if you choose to eat out.
Day 1 most people go in a suit, by day three its more relaxed, smart casual would be my advice (as it can get stuffy).
Day 1, take a book/kindle/laptop as selection can be quite a lengthy process.
I ended up as foreman so pronounced the chap in dock GUILTY!
Would I do it again? Probably.
I've been self employed a chunk of my life. Why should I be expected to take a financial hit as well?
Cube Attain