Hi fellow wise people,
I got selected for Jury duty to attend end of this month. The estimated period is for 8 weeks.
Few months back I had been selected, but my company's HR sent them a letter requesting to postpone citing my crucial involvement in the project at the trial time. It was waived.
Now the tricky part is, I have resigned from my current company and this is my last month. So I am 100% sure my company wont find any crucial involvement from me during the last few days, and my new company I am joining next week doesn't even have me in their payroll system.
How can I get rid of this tricky situation? Surely I do not want to end up jobless at the end of the Jury duty trial!!
How to Avoid Jury Duty
zond on 04/10/2017 - 09:20
Last edited 04/10/2017 - 09:49 by 1 other user
Last edited 04/10/2017 - 09:49 by 1 other user
Comments
Can I pass them your details? :-)
It's randomly picked but you need to be an Australian citizen with certain characteristics (eg. not a lawyer, over 18, mentally ok…etc)
i see. yeah i fit all the criteria so waiting for the luck to come….
I would love to do jury duty as well. Given people prefer not to do it, perhaps there should be some kind of register so you can express your interest. A friend recently participated as a jury member, the whole process sounded fascinating and he learnt a great deal. A lot of responsibility as well, the jury decision was life changing to quite a few people.
@17833: agree. much better for people like us, compare with them doing the random picking and get some bogans to come.
@17833: I would love to do it, too. The problem is the employers are not keen to loosen you, plus the pay I will get is about 1/3rd of what my company would pay. Since I watched the movie '12 Angry Men' I was always eager to attend such trial. Pity - they dont do it during the weekends…
Believe me, once you have experienced it you will not want a repeat.
Also be on the electoral roll. If you are not registered to vote you won't get picked
I was so excited to be called for jury duty twice but both times I didn't get selected for the jury.
Move to North Korea.
Surely I do not want to end up jobless at the end of the Jury duty trial!!
I'm 99.999% sure that your new employer can't discriminate against you because you've been called up for Jury Duty
There's an interesting Youtube video by CGP Grey on this topic…
The problem is my new employer is not my employer yet. I do not exist in their system, I am in the middle of nowhere…
If you are in the middle of nowhere, like far away from the court house? When i got Jury Duty, I applied to be excused with the reason that I live way too far away from the Court House.
That wont work. They know my address and I live 10 minutes drive from the court
All you do is turn up as required, and during the selection process, express extreme views that show you cannot act impartially. You will be excused.
If you say you think everyone is guilty, the will probably make you Jury Foreperson and give you a medal.
Not in SA they will probably excuse you every time.
I did Jury Duty here in SA. Lots of people queued up and told their sad story and got let off.
Lots of stuffing around with waiting and being told to come back.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tfn3NbM1q68
Replace rat with a couple of choice words and they'll leave you alone.
And dress casually or over the top. One look from the lawyers and they’ll go no thanks
First - most cases only last 5 to 7 days so it is pretty highly unlikely you'd get an 8 week trial. It is quite simple to be excused from jury duty. On the day you are called just go in to court. If you are called into a jury selection pool the judge will ask if anyone would like to be excused and for what reason. You can then write on a piece of paper your reason for being excused - simply state you have chronic anxiety and could not handle the pressure of a jury trial (or another mental illness). The judge would then excuse you.
I served my jury duty two months ago and saw several people do this, they didn't have to speak and the judge excused them. Personally, I just accepted that I was there and I did the job in a trial for 7 days.
You roll up, tell the Sheriff your circumstances.
According to the internet, just keep shouting 'jury nullification!' to the judge.
Just tell them the truth - that you are about to start a new job. They should waive you.
They might waive you the first time, but if you keep postponing, they'll deny you. (Happened in my case, but then the lawyers get to choose random people they want out, and they get picked)
Why not put the whole Jury Duty thing on Airtasker and make some hard Cash out of this by having someone sub for you? lol
Don't keep getting out of jury duty. I was going get out of it, and then a mate convinced me to give it a go.
Mine lasted 3 days, and was actually a pretty good experience.
Where I live out at Ipswich I was getting picked all the time. I got it like 4 times in 4 years. But cause I work for the gov they wont let you out of it. So I did it, I even got a case once. Was interesting to see how it all worked, but its really quite boring and you do nothing the majority of the time.
The other times I had it, I never got picked and so just bludged the time away until they told you to go.
Let it serve as a lesson for dodging the first time.
The vast majority of people summoned for jury duty don't actually go to trial, so you'd be even "luckier" to end up in one.
If you were planning to move to Newcastle in a few weeks (or anywhere > 65 km from the courthouse) they'd probably let you off.
I wouldn't mind serving on jury duty but I think it's discriminatory against casually employed people (e.g. labour hire workers), though compensation varies state to state (federally they don't recognise casual employment). In NSW, "employed people" receive more than double the daily allowance after 11 days, but I haven't read their definition for "unemployed".
I didn't know you get paid for it. Is that the case even if you are not employed and/or currently not looking for work?
Thanks for the link.
Look, I just studied a law degree and all I said to get out of jury duty is that I am pending admission as a solicitor. I said this as I had to turn up to enrol for possible jury duty selection. I did not provide any proof (my other lawyer friends have not).
This is is a risky fib to make if you are not a lawyer but it is an easy way out.
If you're a law student, won't you want to value the opportunity to be a jury to get experience and more knowledge about the legal system and how it actually works??
It's a waste of my time with minimum pay. Hard to get away with work commitments
So you are encouraging someone to lie?
You'd make a great solicitor.
You can just say something outrageous and be excused. "Everyone with tattoos looks guilty to me" " He walks like a guilty person" "The police don't make mistakes why do we even need a trial?"
Not sure this would work, I was talking to a District Court Judge one day and he told me about a case that day said "I knew he was guilty the moment I saw him".
Id have trouble staying attentive more than 20 minutes and keep up with what everyone says
ha must be the same case my mate is going to be on, funny enough his situation is very similar to yours as well.
Hes trying to get out as well
When in court reply "He's definitely guilty and I won't be changing my mind" to any question that is posed to you.
arrive wearing the most politically incorrect t-shirt you can find
bahahaha love it
I wonder who would actually buy this… lol
I wonder who would actually buy this… lol.
People looking to avoid Jury duty
Fake your death.
People who can be excused
https://juror.nsw.gov.au/brochure/summonsSome categories of people can ask to be excused from serving on a jury. These categories include (amongst others):
practising dentists, pharmacists and medical practitioners
carers of children, and carers of ill or disabled people
people who live further than 65Km from the courthouse.
If you are unsure whether you are eligible to serve on a jury, please contact the Jury Information Line on 1300 722 574.You may also be excused if you have good reason.
These may include:
temporary absence from your home (e.g. pre-booked holiday commitments)
sickness or a disability
exams or study commitments.I could use a sicky certificate from the GP… would that count? "Paranoid personality disorder"!!
If it's an 8 week estimated case they will have a pool of approx 5 times the amount required.. I once went.. Fortunately for me I missed out and total investment was half a day.
on the first day they select a panel.. takes ages.. Everyone gets the opportunity to plead their case to the judge. Its in the courts best interest to elect a jury that will stay on target for 8 weeks…
Your new employer has to release you
http://www.courts.justice.nsw.gov.au/Pages/cats/jury_service…take a white hood and a KKK shirt, you will be home by smoko
If you are the sole provider in the family, you can use that as exemption.
In our case I'm sole earner, my wife is full-time carer for our kids. She has been excused on this basis, so would I still be excused as sole earner?
Yes you'll be excused. It's included in the list of exemption.
There is a degree of discretion around granting leave from Jury Duty I believe. I have served once, been passed over twice and excused 3 times over the 20 years. Twice I was excused because I was changing jobs. This was all in NSW.
Fill in the appropriate form (as far before the jury service date as possible) and submit it. Be polite. Simply explain that you are about to change jobs, and will not have commenced the new role by the jury date. Provide some evidence that the new role and start date are real. Indicate that you understand the importance of Jury Duty etc etc and the privilege of being able to serve but that you are concerned that on this occasion if you ended up empanelled, whilst the new employer would be obliged to release you for jury duty it may set you back with your new work colleagues and also in your new job by being forced to start so much later than agreed - mention if there is any booked induction training or such that you are supposed to do on starting.
Thats basically what I have done twice over the years and it has worked both times (legitimately I should add). Your milage may vary, but I have always found that if you approach it reasonably they are usually understanding. You may end up having to present the "excuse" to the judge on the day you are supposed to serve if they can't excuse you before then, but I've seen that work out well too.
Good luck, both in escaping the jury duty and in the new role.
Just yell out racist and sexist remarks and you will be quickly excused
I did it about 15 years ago. Trial went about 2 weeks. We got sequestered during deliberations at a nearby hotel and it was a pretty loose night. We had two court chaperones but all the food and booze was covered. Good times
http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/how-to-get-out-of-jury-duty-planet…
Claiming the planets weren't aligned was among the more bizarre excuses that members of the NSW public gave to avoid performing their civic duty. Other unusual examples included:
I am allergic to airconditioning and am scared of coming into an airconditioned room;I need to look after my cat;I have a public transport phobia and can't attend because there is no one to drive me to court;The planets are not aligned and it's not a good fit for me;I will fall asleep in the trial and my snoring will be a distraction.
A spokesperson for NSW Justice said these excuses didn't have any supporting evidence and were refused.
Who can't serve?
If you aren't on the electoral roll, you can't serve. Others who are excluded include anyone with a criminal conviction, someone who holds high office, such as the Governor-General, crown prosecutors, lawyers, police officers, members of Parliament, and anyone who has access to information about prison inmates.
Others may also seek exemption, including dentists, doctors, clergy and emergency workers.
What's a suitable excuse?
The most common reasons people are excused are illness or injury, a conflict of interest, proof that they would suffer financial hardship, and employment. Claiming the dog ate your jury letter won't work, but potential jurors can be excused if they have a proof of a pre-booked holiday, medical reasons, study commitments or care for children or others.
I have 3 more days to go. Still no excuse letter from my new employer. I will just take their offer letter and try making an excuse. Another one is I have a prebooked holiday towards the end of trial estimated period. I will take a chance… Plus recently ordered a stick-in fake tattoo. Have some long chains lying around home, old stinky cloths and looking up dictionaries to find all questionable swearing vocabulary. I hope they would cross me off for a few years. Unfortunately I dont drink, otherwise would have ended up half sober. Instant pass!!
to be fair, my question is how to get picked to do jury duty? i really want to experience that. at least once in my life time.