Questions about jury service
I have received a jury citation, will I be required to physically attend on the date specified on my citation?
You may or may not be required to physically attend court on the date specified on your citation form, however you must be available to take a telephone call at any point during this day and possibly subsequent days - if there are any difficulties with this then you should contact the court direct. You may be asked to call the jury attendance update number several times throughout the week, so please listen carefully to the message.
What should I do if I am ill when I am due to attend court?
If you are ill on the date you are due to attend court you must contact the clerk of court on the telephone number on the front of your citation before 09:15. Contact details can also be accessed on Court Locations page. You must also provide a medical certificate. Medical certificates which are requested from GPs for the purpose of jury service are exempt from payment. This is in terms of The National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) (Scotland) Regulations 2018 (2018/66). You should therefore tell the GP surgery of the purpose of the certificate and if you have any difficulty in getting the certificate free of charge you should refer the surgery to these regulations.
I earn more than the amounts payable for jury service, can I claim more?
Loss of earnings compensation for jurors is decided by the Scottish Ministers. Payments are made as compensation for loss incurred during attendance, but may not fully cover individual juror's actual loss of earnings. Payments are based on standard rates worked out by the time spent on jury duty. The maximum amounts payable are included in the expenses guide. There is no scope for any juror to be paid more than these maximum amounts.
Is childcare available at the court?
There are no childcare facilities available at the court. You may, however, be able to claim childcare expenses. Please read the expenses guide for more details.
How can I find out if I am required for jury service tomorrow?
You should telephone the jurors' attendance update line as mentioned in your citation.
I am an employer, can I claim expenses as my employee has been selected for jury service?
No, only the employee can claim for loss of earnings. Please read the expenses guide for more details.
Can I claim for loss of earnings if I am on a zero hour contract?
If you have been asked to attend court as a juror and you are on a zero hour contract, you may be able to claim for loss of earnings. Your employer would be required to confirm the shifts/hours of work that you have been/would have been offered during the time you were required to attend for jury service. If you have any further questions in regards to this prior to attending court, please contact the court in which you were cited for. You will find contact details for your cited court on your citation form.
How do I apply for excusal/exemption?
You should read the 'Guide to Jury Service Eligibility and Applying for Excusal' and fill in the application for exemption or excusal from jury service form that you will have received and return it to the court which cited you. The court contact details can be found on your citation or can be accessed on the Court Locations page.
Who do I contact to find out if my application for excusal/exemption from jury service has been granted?
You should receive a letter from the court advising if this has been granted or not. If you do not receive anything then you should contact the court which cited you.
The contact details are provided on the 'Local Information Sheet' that you will have been sent, or can be accessed on the
Court Locations page. Please note that you should not use the jurors' attendance update line number for this purpose.
Is breastfeeding permitted in the court room whilst it is sitting?
Breastfeeding is permitted in court rooms however it is always subject to the interests of justice and the conduct of court proceedings. It is a matter for the presiding judge/sheriff or justice of the peace in each case.
Can breastfeeding mothers be excused from jury duty?
The clerk of court will consider requests for excusal on an individual basis and will take an appropriate view based on the circumstances of each individual. Anyone wishing to be excused from jury service is normally asked to submit their reasons to the court for consideration and to include any relevant supporting documentation.
It is not our policy to request a medical certificate to support a request for excusal on the grounds of breastfeeding. Requests for excusal on the basis of breastfeeding should not be refused.
Can breastfeeding mothers serve on the jury?
If a juror decides not to seek excusal, the court will consider, on a case-by-case basis, whether it would be practical for the breastfeeding mother to serve on the jury. Although we will always try to assist with enabling this, it should be noted that the practicalities involved could make breastfeeding in the course of jury service extremely difficult (in particular, during the period in which the jury is secluded).