Fillable Form Jury Duty Excuse Letter

What is the Jury Duty Excuse Letter?

The Jury Duty Excuse Letter is a document given in response to a Jury Summons, indicating that a particular person is unable to attend Jury Duty for a certain reason.

Valid reasons to be excused from Jury Duty include:

 

• Medical concerns 
 

• Undue hardship (i.e. Excessively difficult or costly to travel)
 

• Dependent care
 

• Student Status
 

• Military Conflict
 

Depending on the district, other valid excuses may be mentioned in the Jury Summons. Otherwise, you may contact the district court itself and inquire about what excuses the court will consider valid. 

Submission of the Jury Duty Excuse Letter may have requirements and/or deadlines that must be met. These requirements and deadlines will differ by state and district, so it is important to check both the jury summons and state laws for more details on any such requirements. 

How do I fill out the Jury Duty Excuse Letter?

The Jury Duty Excuse Letter is short and easy to fill, only taking up a single page.

The letter requires that you provide personal information such as your full legal name and home address. It will also be beneficial to provide additional information that is relevant to the reason for why you wish to be excused from jury duty in your explanation. 

Step 1: Sender and Recipient’s Name and Address, and Date.

Enter your full name and address as well as the full name and address of the recipient of the letter. Then enter the date that the letter was or is to be submitted.

The recipient of the letter may be the name indicated in your jury summons (often a clerk of the court or a specific judge). Given this, the address of the recipient should, unless indicated otherwise, be the address of the district court. 

Step 2: Salutations

Politely address the person that you are addressing the letter to. If you are addressing a clerk of the court, use their full name (no abbreviations). If you are addressing a judge, the proper salutation should be: “Dear Honorable Judge [Full name of judge]”. As with the clerk of the court, do not abbreviate any title or part of the judge’s name.

Step 3: Explanation

Enter the date indicated on your jury summons (the date of the trial) and your reason for not being able to attend. 

Step 4: Contact Information

Enter your contact information here. Make sure that you are providing updated contact information, and that if/when the court calls to approve (or reject) your excuse, you are able to answer the call/respond to the message ASAP, so use your preferred method of notification unless the Jury Summons specifies the way through which the court will contact you.

Step 5: Signature

Write your name and sign the letter in the given space to certify that you are the one requesting to be excused from jury duty. Make sure to double-check that any and all information you put in the letter is correct and true to avoid issues with its veracity and to increase your chances of your request for exemption being approved.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is Jury Duty?

Jury Summons are given to randomly selected people from lists of registered voters and people with driver’s licenses who live in the district of the court. These summons call on said randomly selected people to appear on a particular date and time to serve on a jury for a court hearing. This service is called Jury Duty.

Where do I send the filled out Jury Duty Excuse Letter?

Send the letter to the judge or clerk of the court that issued the Jury Summons.

How do I get a Jury Duty Excuse Letter?

You may print the template provided here, or write your own Jury Duty Excuse Letter to be submitted to the court. 

What other requirements are needed to file a Jury Duty Excuse Letter?

Requirements are different per district, with some requirements being mandated by state law. Check the Jury Summons and state laws, or contact the court to determine what other documents or otherwise are required to be submitted alongside the Jury Duty Excuse Letter. 

What can I do to make my excuse more likely to be considered valid?

Provide documents or other evidence of your cited reason for not being able to serve Jury Duty. Make sure that these documents are themselves valid and truthful. Documents such as a letter from your employer or a medical certificate will be most useful for this purpose.

What kinds of cases do jury members look over?

Jurors can be called for both Civil and Criminal cases. In Criminal cases, the government bringing the case against the defendant must prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt. The jury must then come to a unanimous decision. In Civil cases, the weight, credit, and value of the evidence as a whole on either side of the argument must be considered. In this case, the jury still has to come to a unanimous decision unless otherwise instructed.  

Are Jurors compensated for serving Jury Duty?

Yes. Jurors are paid $50 per day of the trial, which can increase to $60 if the trial lasts for 10 days or longer.

Can my employer fire me for missing work due to serving Jury Duty?

No. Employers are forbidden by law from firing, intimidating, or coercing any permanent employee because of their jury service. 

Is there a penalty for being absent from Jury Duty without having submitted a request to be excused?

Failing to attend jury duty can result in being charged a fine of $100 to $1000 and/or being held in contempt of court and ordered to do community service or even jail time.

Why is a Jury needed for court?

Having a Jury present for court proceedings ensures the defendant’s right to the Sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution: The right for the defendant to have a speedy and public trial and an impartial jury. 

What are the requirements to be considered eligible for Jury Duty?

The requirements to be eligible to be appointed as a juror are the following:

 

• be a United States citizen;
 

• be at least 18 years of age;
 

• reside primarily in the judicial district for one year;
 

• be adequately proficient in English to satisfactorily complete the juror qualification form;
 

• have no disqualifying mental or physical condition;
 

• not currently be subject to felony charges punishable by imprisonment for more than one year; and
 

• never have been convicted of a felony (unless civil rights have been legally restored)
 

Can I pass my Jury Duty to someone else?

No. Jury Summons are specific to the person they are sent to, and cannot be transferred to another person.

Do I need to have legal experience to serve as a Juror?

No. Jury members are actually instructed not to learn anything about a case before the trial or to speak to any of the parties involved with the case. 

Can I appeal a decision to not accept my request for exemption from Jury Duty?

Exemptions from Jury Duty are granted at the court’s discretion, and cannot be appealed or reviewed by any other entity. If the court denies the request for exemption for any reason, it is highly unlikely that further requests or attempts to appeal that decision will be accepted outside of extraordinary circumstances.

Can I write a Jury Duty Excuse Letter to excuse my employee from Jury service?

Yes. Sending a Jury Duty Excuse Letter for an employee requires that an explanation is provided in the letter regarding how said employee’s absence would significantly and negatively affect business and/or operations.