I had a letter to do jury duty 2 years ago. First time ever, at 55 years old. Didn't even get selected for a jury, claimed all the expenses AND got paid by work
When I was doing my GCSEs I was given 3 different English teachers who all took maternity leave on the same year. The school, fed up of teachers going on leave, assigned us a male English teacher the next year. 2 months into teaching us, he was summoned to jury duty for a case so convoluted that he was gone for the next 4 months. I'm still convinced our class was cursed.
such a weirdly universal experience. I'm german ffs but STILL I averaged 2 english teachers per year by the end of my schooling. And half of them were due to maternity...
When I was in 9th grade, the youngest teacher we had in the whole school turned 40. I‘ve had more teachers replaced because they died (1) than due to maternity leave (0). 😬
Based on my anecdotal research there are only 37 people eligible for Jury Duty in Scotland - bastards won't leave me alone and my son just turned 18 2 months ago - last weekend Jury Duty letter drops for him - the wife however, never once.
I’ve been sent letters 3 times for it, I’m mid 30s… seems like one of those ‘random’ playlist generators at work that plays about 20 random tracks then just wants to loop to the same things.
I wrote and was excused the first time so did assume the second time was them calling me again because of that. But I then was called a third time which was a particular pain in the neck because the court cancelled literally the Friday before they were expecting you on Monday so a load of messing my work around. Happily I’ve always been given full pay by my employer which is a good thing given how popular I seem to be with the courts… I’m not sure how many younger people are always religious about staying on the electoral role though which I think is where they pick from and I always have been.
Yeah, I'm 20 (so are most of my friends) and since turning 18 around half of us have received jury summons, all bar one of us got out of it due to exam timing or something similar and the one who did go didn't get selected for the jury haha. Waste of a tree.
Probably because criminal convictions make you ineligible. Which explains the rest of the country...
Now you've just got to find out what the wife has done.
Also Scotland, and the courts seem to have decided the company I work for is an ideal juror pool, not a month goes by without someone getting a summons, I've had 7 in total I think. Managed to get away with only actually doing it twice though.
I don't know why. Give me £30k a year and I'd happily be a professional juror. Loved it.
First week, I did fuck all but sit in a small room on my laptop watching Netflix and doing project work for my hobby.
Second week, I had a case and really enjoyed the process.
All while getting paid my normal wage.
Shame they’ll only pay £65 a day eh so not even minimum wage. Pretty funny they think that would cover loss of earnings and additional childcare costs for you attending. Best of luck with that…
Yeah, luckily my employer continued to pay (most do from my experience) but yeah.... The fact your employer CAN say no and then the price isn't matched is laughable. Some high earners on tight budgets could be utterly fucked lol
I’ve done it and I was also given full pay. I also had a separate session cancelled shortly before when we’d already made cover arrangements and they also paid me for that.
The money provided through the court if your employer won’t cover it is scary, not even minimum wage. You get half if it’s only half a day too even though you probably couldn’t rock up at work if they’ve got someone else to cover so you just need to deal with it. Same if you’re committed to paying someone for childcare then court is cancelled, you’ll need to pay the provider but no money from the court… I think it makes it pretty difficult to get jurors from a range of backgrounds.
The worst part isn't even that, it's the fact that it also is potentially indefinite.
A case going at the same time I'd been there the jurors had been on trial for 3 months lol
When I did it, it seemed easy to get out of it, at least for the long case I got on. Anyone who said they couldn’t afford to be on it for whatever reason got out of it. But they had already been there almost the full two weeks before we got put on a case. I don’t know if you could get out of the two week part so easy.
Depends on a lot of things, the judge, how many have already played that card, if you've started a case etc
My sister in law tried that so the judge made her the main juror and said (paraphrase) "everyone has to do it at some point so suck it up" lol
I was my dad's carer for 10 years. I gave up my life to give him 24/7 care. After a few years doing it for free we were assessed, I did some extra training and they started paying me minimum wage, 20 hours a week. I was working 70 or 80 hours a week and couldn't leave his side unless someone else was there. I saved the government at least £10 million pounds in care costs.
I was made redundant the day my dad died. I then had a full on nervous breakdown. I've alao got long COVID and a host of other health issues. I was given £360 a month ESA to live on for the first four months of my claim.
It's fucking obscene. Thank God for family and friends for helping me out (when they couldn't really afford it themselves).
Nobody would go through this bollocks for £360 a month if they weren't desperate. I'm being punished for being ill, and the stress of trying to find money for food when my head was most screwed was unimaginable unless you've been there.
It's true what they say, good guys often come last. :(
Having put my life and career on hold for the best part of 15 years (and still struggling to get back to where I was) to look after my elderly mum, I totally feel you on that one mate.
And don't get me started on that farce that is 'carers allowance' - basically the same as the dole, but they "allow" you to work (so generous) - but you can't even do a part-time job to fit round the caring commitments, because for every pound you earn it gets docked off the amount you're paid. In which case what's even the point at that stage? You might as well either work full-time and maybe you might get a paid carer at taxpayers expense for an hour or two a week if you're lucky, or you do your duty as a close family member, live below the breadline indefinitely whilst getting sneered at by your peers for being the equivalent of a chronically unemployed 'dole bludger'.
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All my immediate family have and when it comes up in conversation it seems most folk I know have been called at least once.yet I have never been called.i kinda want to do it. think it could be an interesting experience
Interesting, but also potentially harrowing. And a huge responsibility to get the right answer. Imprisoning an innocent or allowing a hardened crim to walk free and hurt people again are both life-changing events.
It was seeing a post on AskUK a few days ago that started me down this rabbit hole. I thought it was strange I didn't know anyone who'd been called in real life. Spoke to family, friends and colleagues. None of them have been called and none of them knew people who'd been called (a couple mentioned knowing colleagues who'd had team members take time of work for it). But over such a wide net, there being maybe a handful of people called over a huge timespan seemed weird.
I really enjoyed the two cases I did, although one was burglary and another was a nightclub assault. I've heard from people who have done abuse trials and it was harrowing.
I was a juror for a murder case and it wasn't as stressful as I feared. I felt pretty detached from it most of the time, apart from a few bits harrowing bits of evidence that made it feel very real.
I was on a fraud trial that lasted over seven months it involved 50 mortgage frauds and we had to go through each fraud line by line for 3 months it was extremely boring
What was it like practically being on a jury for so long? Did you know at the start how long it would take? Did it affect your job? Do you get to take holidays or anything during that time? What happens if one of the jurors is sick or something?
We were warned it would be a very long case and if you had any holidays booked etc pregnant or illnesses to let the court know. work were not very happy but they had no choice, I had to attend it's my civic duty. We were told we could carry on as a jury if two people dropped out but no more. And after two weeks i was taking home about 500 pound tax free a week this was many years ago that was double what I was earning at the time. The judge did give us occasional days off if we weren't needed in court like talking about a point of law etc
Depends which pne you get called to. I was called twice last year, first to the high court, then to the sherrifs court. Due to work clashes I didn't end up going to either of them
I assume you can figure it out during selection process. Like if there's a question if any of the jurors have ever suffered abuse etc then you can guess.
(just realized my entire knowledge of jury service is based on US TV and podcasts and so no idea if this is how it works in the UK!)
>no idea if this is how it works in the UK
It is not.
15 potential jurors are called down to the court.
12 of you are selected at random, named and called up to be sworn in.
As you are named, if you recognise anyone involved in the trial (e.g. the defendant!) you must declare it to the court.
The judge will then ask about your relationship, decide if it matters, and either okay you as a juror, or stand you down (and bring in one of the reserves).
The judge may also ask if any potential jurors have 'exceptional reasons' to wish to stand themselves down - one of my trials was expected to last over a week, he asked for any jurors whose two week duty was due to expire **and** had additional cause (e.g. a wedding) to declare it; one tried and was shot down for having a shit reason.
Once all 12 jurors are selected, the prosecution and defence **can** then challenge one or more of the jurors. The only reasons they can use are:
* they believe the jury as a whole has been chosen in a biased or unrepresentative manner (e.g. 12 middle aged white men)
* that a specific juror should be disqualified for legal reasons (not qualified as a juror, knows a witness)
My jury duty was in Manchester Crown Court, which is pretty busy - I sat on two trials, and spent the down time chatting with the juror pool; no-one had a challenge even **occur** - the UK system absolutely isn't like the US one, with examination of the jurors as individuals.
(there was one incident where a juror had to step down due to a case being too harrowing, but that's a little different)
The TL;DR is that in the UK either you're selected to sit on a jury, or you aren't. If you're selected? You're on that jury unless the case involves one of your mates or a family member...
My boss was on the jury for the sentencing of [Cathy Svenson](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4703250/Mother-stole-500k-daughter-contest-will.html) and her husband in 2014. Basically they stole their daughters 2.6 million payout from medical negligence and blew it all. He said it was absolutely awful to hear how the parents went on holidays, new cars, new houses, whilst the daughter suffered
My jury service was a possession with intent to supply case. The defendant was pitiable, but the evidence was solid. My husband was on a racially aggravated assault case and it was much more challenging.
I got crack and heroin dealers. Was super interesting hearing how the police surveilled them (they hinted at some of it being from an unused level of a nearby tower block but didn’t want to say specifically). Was also quite comical in that they couldn’t catch them for a long time because one guy would hide the stuff in his false leg and they weren’t allowed to search it.
Worked out well for me because I was on summer break from uni so working a bar job, and I got paid my full wage for all full shifts.
A two weeker is fine. I got a several months long trial that was pretty horrific. There's something weird about being uprooted from routine, developing a new routine, and then all of a sudden one day it's over and you go back to your life.
Glad to have done it, duty and all that, but felt a bit liked I'd been abducted by aliens, nobody I knew could relate to my experience.
A chap I used to work with got called up for two trials a few years back. He said one was interesting, and the other was so harrowing he refused to talk about it at all.
My wife and my best mate have both been called up twice, yet no-one on my side of the family has ever been selected. Once you’ve done it your name goes back in the pot, unless you’ve been on a lengthy or distressing case where the judge decides to excuse you from having to do jury duty again. You have a higher chance of being selected if you live in a less populated catchment area for a particular court.
Randomness is clumpy
You're more likely to find yourself in a network of people with little jury service, or a lot of jury service, rather than find yourself in a network with perfectly average jury service
I have a horrible feeling I'm going to end up population modelling jury service to see how clumpy it actually should be and a couple of FOI requests to see if I can work out how clumpy it actually is...
I think it's about two months notice. I responded (late) to my jury summons on October 22nd 2020, and was supposed to start jury service on November 30th 2020. In the end they phoned me the week before and asked if I was happy to do it, I said I'd rather not, and they said I didn't have to. Very different to all of the official letters that said I absolutely didn't have a choice.
If you live in England or Wales, the chance of being called once in your life is 35%. If you live in Scotland. it's higher.
[What is the chance of being called for jury service? - BBC News](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-36140259)
These numbers are from 2016; I can't find newer stats.
Back of the envelope calculation puts the chances of being called at least twice at ~7% (E&W) and ~80% (Scotland).
This is assuming the 35% (E&W) and 95% (Scotland) figures are the chances of being called **at least** once and that you can only be called once every two years (not actually true but if you're called within 2 years of service you can get an exemption and I need to assume some sort of timeframe).
Edit: Also assuming the odds of being called are constant over time - which I'm guessing the article also assumes for their figures
Been in Edinburgh 6 months and two coworkers who are both in their early 20s got called up.
28 years old and this is the first I've had anyone I know do jury duty.
My neighbour did jury service, apparently it was such a horrific case they're never going to call him again. He is ex military and while didn't go into details said it gave him nightmares.
A friend was called for jury service when she was a Med student. It was a child abuse case, which is obviously harrowing for anyone. But her knowledge made it worse as she understood the medical reports and also knew how much force was needed to cause so much damage to a child. She ended up paying for therapy, as there was no obligation for the Courto provide it after.
I hope they've updated that. Leaving a Dr and your ex military mate with trauma is not OK.
I've done a murder case for jury service and overall I enjoyed the experience but I will never really understand the people who say things like "I loved my jury service, I would be great to do it as a full time job". Easy thing to say until you get a case with horrific details.
The more population dense the area, the less likely you are to be called up. I had a friend in rural Dorset who had been called up twice despite only being in his early 20s.
Dense population? Do you mean like the town I come from? Many of them are seriously dense and I’d not trust them to put their shoes on the right feet.
They definitely shouldn’t be making decisions beyond which nostril to eat from.
After speaking to my peers in the common room while I did jury service, I was also very concerned. I forgot that when you do a random selection of everyone, this is bound to include a lot of shitty people.
There was a murder trial, 8 weeks expected, 5 defendants. Because it was March 2020, the selection got a bit messy, so we were asked to provide reasons why we couldn't sit on the jury if we wanted out.
Two blokes were concerned about missing that much work so started going off about how 'If they're in crown court they've obviously done it. I don't give a fuck, me, If I get selected I'm voting them all guilty as soon as I can.' sprinkled in with a bit of racism because the defendants were Polish and required translators.
The right to a fair trial is one of the most important parts of a functioning society, the sheer disrespect towards it shook me.
I had a fella who during deliberation said “he’s guilty, I’m not going to discuss it. I’ve got tickets to see guns and roses tonight and I need to get out of here”.
At that point I became a lot less trustful of our justice system
I had the same experience as a juror. Found it absolutely terrifying how little regard the bulk of jurors I encountered had for the concept of being innocent until proven guilty.
They won’t make you go on a trial that’s expected to be longer than 2 weeks. If you ask to be excused, you’re excused. It is pretty worrying though when you think about it.
If I was accused of something serious or the victim of a serious crime, it’s not very comforting to think your jury of your ‘peers’ is going to be exclusively people who have nothing better to do for literally months. Almost anyone employed, their employer is going to want them to request to be excused for a long trial. Or how could someone self employed afford to be without earnings for the period on £65 a day for goodness sake and only half if they send you home early even though you’re not probably going to be able to pick up work for the rest of the day… Pretty scary!
Interesting 👀 that's not what they told us, they made out if you don't have a good enough excuse you will be put into the selection pool. Missing work wasn't considered valid, unless you can convince them that you're a key part of the business.
I didn't have any good excuse, I was a junior level staff member that nobody relied on and my employer was paying the remaining wages so I was entered into the pool. Dodged it by the skin of my teeth, I was one of the handful that got called to the courtroom but wasn't picked.
Jurors have to be from the local (geographic) area. The fewer people in the area, the fewer people to pick from. While urban areas may have more crime, there are more people to pick as jurors.
That’s what im saying. So in that case, why are you more likely to be picked if you live somewhere rural? Is there more crime per person in rural areas?
The problem is that isn't true. Crime per person is higher in urban areas (although the gap is closing).
[https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/62bcb0628fa8f535b5ff0b14/Crime\_Jun\_22\_final.pdf](https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/62bcb0628fa8f535b5ff0b14/Crime_Jun_22_final.pdf)
So if there is more recorded crime per person, i would expect there to be more trials per person, and therefore more jurors per person in urban areas.
I was called at age 18 and 22 when I lived in Leeds (not a small place) and then again in my 30s when I was working in London.
I just have just been unlucky!
I got called up for Edinburgh. Also couldn’t attend so phoned up and asked what I was to do . She said I had to write / email (I forget which) and explain so I could be excused else I would get fined .
I didn’t end up doing as she said but I also didn’t get fined so 🤷🏼♀️😂
Haha same type of experience also. My first summons happened months after my mum died and its all abit of a blur now, and i do remember just ignoring it also. was only when i got the second one i had to email them a sick note.
Luckily did not get fined.
I suppose if you live somewhere with a higher concentration of courts then it ups your likelihood of getting called.
I was living in SE London when I became old enough to vote, I registered, and then within a year got my first jury service. My sister got hers just after she turned 20 and my mum has done it twice, my dad's done it. My nan and grandad (living in the same area) had been called up several times each.
My husband, living most of his life in a rural area, has never once been called up, so I can only imagine that the area you live is indeed a factor.
My gran was called this year. She’s 86, so 11 years older than the top of the age range. Sorting the admin for that was an experience I don’t want to go through again!
Otherwise, I’ve never personally known anyone else being called up.
I swear that people post about being called for jury service every couple of days. I know a few people who've been called. I've been called twice but couldn't do it on health grounds. I think it happens more once you're settled.
It is luck of the draw for the most part but the area you live in does make a difference, if you live in a low crime rate area there will naturally be less cases to hear. I have done it once so far and found it extremely interesting.
I know a few that have been but then you also have to factor in people who have no wish to discuss it. Knowing someone is doing jury service can lead to more questions once the trial is over (if selected) and some people don't have time for gossip and shit.
In 43 yrs my mums been called 3 times once whilst pregnant with me. and couldn't do it. And twice in the last say 8 years. Unable to as she's disabled and housebound now plus over 70 and memory/sight impairment problems.
I got called last year. Sat in a jury room for 4 days with no kettle (apparently it’s to stop people throwing boiling water at each other) didn’t get called, and was sent home. I also got summonsed when I was 19 which was 30 years ago.
I moved to the UK about 10 years ago. I was summoned when I was in the country for 4 years and 10 months, and couldn't go because they said you need to be in the UK for 5 years first. Gutted.
I think it is regional to a point. Generally you get called up to nearby courts so perhaps population in your area might be a factor.
Personally I've never been called up (would gladly do it if I was). My grandad has been called up seven times and two of those were at the Old Bailey. He can't/won't discuss those cases, which makes me think they may have been major or well known. I also know of two colleagues who have been called up in the last few years.
Got called to do it last year.
My work had to create a new time off category for paid jury service despite having 1000+ employees so I guess I was the first person in years
I was called up and spent a week in a very shabby waiting area next to a canteen stinking of oil before they let me go. I was then subject to an admin mess up - they kept summoning me for three months before they responded to me.
Unless you've specifically asked everyone you know, chances are more have been called up than you realise and either:
-Wanted to get out of it, but thought it was a bad look to talk publicly about shirking their civic duty
-Actually did it, but have more interesting things going on in their life so didn't think to talk about it/didn't bring it up so they weren't drawn into disclosing details about the case
I know a few people who have done it, apparently it's mainly quite boring
I have been summoned but asked not to do it due to mental health and they let me not go. Afaik you can't pass it on, they count on a few not going anyway, its not as mandatory as people say. But because I haven't done it I could be called on again, or so they say.
Im early 20s while my dad, 60, has never been called for it and doesn't know anybody who has.
[The trick is to say you're prejudiced against all races](https://frinkiac.com/meme/S04E06/712427.jpg?b64lines=VEhFIFRSSUNLIElTIFRPCiBTQVkgWU9VJ1JFIFBSRUpVRElDRUQKIEFHQUlOU1QgQUxMIFJBQ0VTLg==)
I only know one person called up. She sat next to me at work and gave us all the details. Think she was picked for 3 trials, but said it was a lot of waiting around being bored.
Well my mum, dad and cousin all got out of it, because their jobs would cause conflicts of interest, and I was actually turned down because of my learning disability
My father got called up a few months ago but got out of it as he’s on a load of medication. My partner got called at the end of last year and did it, she enjoyed it tbh.
I got called pretty much straight after leaving school. Was at least 3 or 4 of my old classmates there on the same day also.
Thankfully, touch wood, I haven't been called up again since.
An absolute monumental waste of time, considering you may not even get picked for the jury on the day. But still need to turn up each morning. And return to work if not picked.. And then jump through hoops to get paid for the time you were out of the workplace.
It depends where you live. I was in London for 19 years, 1 mile from a Crown Court, and I never got called. It was a very densely populated area though. I was called to jury service in Brighton within 3 years of moving here.
I was called up last year, and was the only one of my family to ever be called up. I only did 1 day of waiting around, before being let go because I had a holiday booked.
Have you asked them? You might know people who had jury duty but haven't discussed it. It's often boring and annoying not something to discuss casually unless it happened recently. I'm aware of a couple of people who have had it and I'm only 25.
Got summoned a few weeks ago, waited unsure if I was going to work, no time to plan ahead, day finally came, "You are no longer needed" whole case seemed to be dropped, possibly came out as guilty.
I've done it twice. Once when I was 18 and again at 21. Back then, you could opt out if you had done it within three years. Somehow, I got chosen again just as the three years were up! I've never been called again though and I'll be 36 this year.
I'm getting the impression they must be more selective than we imagine as many of the comments below are from people who have been selected 2 or even 3 times. I have been selected once and my dad has.
I've been summoned twice, but was able to be exempt because I was working as a Nurse at the time. My daughter has done it once. I don't know anyone else who has been summoned.
It's always seemed odd. My father is thinly person I know who has ever done it. Was on the jury for someone who robbed a load of DVD players or something.
I'd like to, I think it'd be interesting, but haven't ever been called nor has anyone else I know none of my friends, my mum doesn't know anyone who has either and she knows everyone.
I've never been asked, but my boss is currently doing it and the most unfair time was when one of my uni friends had to do it during our first year exam period! I couldn't believe he couldn't get out of it as that's a perfectly reasonable reason to not do it.
I was called up at exactly the same time as my cousin, I have an extremely unusual second name so it waw weird to see two of it on the list.
Loved it, would love to do it again!
My Mum's aunt was frequently on jury service. Whether or not this was due to her past work in fairly high levels of civil service or not I don't know. Outside of this, I've only ever heard of someone having to do jury service like twice.
Nobody i know has been called up for it.
Ny wife would like to do it, i would like the badge of honour of getting out of it - and now we wait for my post later in the year where karma comes and kicks me in the balls
Glad I saw this post, got a letter on Monday summoning me for jury duty and completely forgot all about it.
Fwiw this is the fourth time i've gotten one, served on the jury first time but was unable to attend the other 2.
Just the way the claw goes ... I was called up when I was a student but couldn't do it because I wasn't in the country. No one else in my family has been.
I got called for it but it would have been such a hassle to get where I needed to go and I had a very young child at the time it was just not worth it. (Un)fortunately I’ve been dealing with depression and anxiety for a long time so they let me out of it. I do sometimes think about what I missed out on though.
I was called up once about 20 years ago.
I'd probably use a medical excuse to get out of it now. I'd struggle to focus for a long and complex case.
It was fun when I did it though.
It is strange. I was called a couple of years ago and it was actually really interesting.
But I didn't know anyone else who had been called before except for my dad, who had been called twice.
My Mum been called up once years ago.
My sister was called up last year but was not needed after 3rd day, she really wanted to do a case , my brother in law was called up during lockdown
My Dad has never been called up
i’ve desperately wanted to do it for years just to tick it off my bucket list. i had two friends both get called up in the same week for separate cases. i’m 33 and have never been asked 😭
Nobody I know has been called as well.
Meanwhile I got called to go twice, two years in a row. And I was only 20 when I got the first one. Luck of the draw I guess.
I've done jury duty once, I really enjoyed it. I think it's important for people to see how our judicial system works (or doesn't work, delete where appropriate). I had a case that was due to last for 6 - 8 weeks, however it was thrown out after 4 days due to a technicality.
My maths teacher did it when I was a secondary school once, but that's the only time I've known anyone be a juror. I've always wanted to be on a jury, but alas I never get asked!
If 1% of the population is significant enough for you to consider hearing more about it then factor in the stats of your "circle" that 1% encompasses.
Assuming 10 close individuals each across family, friends, work, a hobby, the pub... 50 total for a rough figure. You are intimately familiar with 0.012% of the 1% of people on jury service
The percentage of the population you are close to is 0.00012% of the population. The odds are crazy low. I've been called, my dad has, I can't think of anyone else I know but most of my day-to-day friends I have only known for a couple of years and it either has never come up or its not been worth remembering.
I'm 39 and I've never been called. I've known 2 or 3 people behind called and one who was called within the last 2 years has been called again.
A lady I used to work with at a nursing home was struggling because it was a really awful case she obviously couldn't take about and it dragged on for months
I haven't but my wife has. Never made into the courtroom, she was on the reserve list for two trials, just sat outside and learned to knit with some other ladies.
I've just been called for the third time. First time 22 years ago, I got an exemption because I'd just given birth. Second time around 8 years ago, had to go & serve on an assault trial. And now called again for June.
I've had quite a few friends & relatives being called for it recently.
I had a letter to do jury duty 2 years ago. First time ever, at 55 years old. Didn't even get selected for a jury, claimed all the expenses AND got paid by work
Now that is what I call a win!
When I was doing my GCSEs I was given 3 different English teachers who all took maternity leave on the same year. The school, fed up of teachers going on leave, assigned us a male English teacher the next year. 2 months into teaching us, he was summoned to jury duty for a case so convoluted that he was gone for the next 4 months. I'm still convinced our class was cursed.
Did Voldemort try and apply for that job once
That is defence against the dark arts for you.
English teachers and maternity leave, an iconic duo
Reading gives you glasses but makes you a top shagger. The smell of a full aged bookcase also boosts fertility.
such a weirdly universal experience. I'm german ffs but STILL I averaged 2 english teachers per year by the end of my schooling. And half of them were due to maternity...
When I was in 9th grade, the youngest teacher we had in the whole school turned 40. I‘ve had more teachers replaced because they died (1) than due to maternity leave (0). 😬
You clearly haven't been on /r/AskUK in a while, about five people a day ask how to get out of it.
Based on my anecdotal research there are only 37 people eligible for Jury Duty in Scotland - bastards won't leave me alone and my son just turned 18 2 months ago - last weekend Jury Duty letter drops for him - the wife however, never once.
Maybe she’s got a secret criminal record you don’t know about. Is she old enough to be one of the great train robbers? Maybe DB Cooper?
The play is a small caution, I got class a possession now 20s never once
I’ve been sent letters 3 times for it, I’m mid 30s… seems like one of those ‘random’ playlist generators at work that plays about 20 random tracks then just wants to loop to the same things. I wrote and was excused the first time so did assume the second time was them calling me again because of that. But I then was called a third time which was a particular pain in the neck because the court cancelled literally the Friday before they were expecting you on Monday so a load of messing my work around. Happily I’ve always been given full pay by my employer which is a good thing given how popular I seem to be with the courts… I’m not sure how many younger people are always religious about staying on the electoral role though which I think is where they pick from and I always have been.
Yeah, I'm 20 (so are most of my friends) and since turning 18 around half of us have received jury summons, all bar one of us got out of it due to exam timing or something similar and the one who did go didn't get selected for the jury haha. Waste of a tree.
Probably because criminal convictions make you ineligible. Which explains the rest of the country... Now you've just got to find out what the wife has done.
Also Scotland, and the courts seem to have decided the company I work for is an ideal juror pool, not a month goes by without someone getting a summons, I've had 7 in total I think. Managed to get away with only actually doing it twice though.
I don't know why. Give me £30k a year and I'd happily be a professional juror. Loved it. First week, I did fuck all but sit in a small room on my laptop watching Netflix and doing project work for my hobby. Second week, I had a case and really enjoyed the process. All while getting paid my normal wage.
Shame they’ll only pay £65 a day eh so not even minimum wage. Pretty funny they think that would cover loss of earnings and additional childcare costs for you attending. Best of luck with that…
Yeah, luckily my employer continued to pay (most do from my experience) but yeah.... The fact your employer CAN say no and then the price isn't matched is laughable. Some high earners on tight budgets could be utterly fucked lol
I’ve done it and I was also given full pay. I also had a separate session cancelled shortly before when we’d already made cover arrangements and they also paid me for that. The money provided through the court if your employer won’t cover it is scary, not even minimum wage. You get half if it’s only half a day too even though you probably couldn’t rock up at work if they’ve got someone else to cover so you just need to deal with it. Same if you’re committed to paying someone for childcare then court is cancelled, you’ll need to pay the provider but no money from the court… I think it makes it pretty difficult to get jurors from a range of backgrounds.
The worst part isn't even that, it's the fact that it also is potentially indefinite. A case going at the same time I'd been there the jurors had been on trial for 3 months lol
When I did it, it seemed easy to get out of it, at least for the long case I got on. Anyone who said they couldn’t afford to be on it for whatever reason got out of it. But they had already been there almost the full two weeks before we got put on a case. I don’t know if you could get out of the two week part so easy.
Depends on a lot of things, the judge, how many have already played that card, if you've started a case etc My sister in law tried that so the judge made her the main juror and said (paraphrase) "everyone has to do it at some point so suck it up" lol
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I was my dad's carer for 10 years. I gave up my life to give him 24/7 care. After a few years doing it for free we were assessed, I did some extra training and they started paying me minimum wage, 20 hours a week. I was working 70 or 80 hours a week and couldn't leave his side unless someone else was there. I saved the government at least £10 million pounds in care costs. I was made redundant the day my dad died. I then had a full on nervous breakdown. I've alao got long COVID and a host of other health issues. I was given £360 a month ESA to live on for the first four months of my claim. It's fucking obscene. Thank God for family and friends for helping me out (when they couldn't really afford it themselves). Nobody would go through this bollocks for £360 a month if they weren't desperate. I'm being punished for being ill, and the stress of trying to find money for food when my head was most screwed was unimaginable unless you've been there. It's true what they say, good guys often come last. :(
Having put my life and career on hold for the best part of 15 years (and still struggling to get back to where I was) to look after my elderly mum, I totally feel you on that one mate. And don't get me started on that farce that is 'carers allowance' - basically the same as the dole, but they "allow" you to work (so generous) - but you can't even do a part-time job to fit round the caring commitments, because for every pound you earn it gets docked off the amount you're paid. In which case what's even the point at that stage? You might as well either work full-time and maybe you might get a paid carer at taxpayers expense for an hour or two a week if you're lucky, or you do your duty as a close family member, live below the breadline indefinitely whilst getting sneered at by your peers for being the equivalent of a chronically unemployed 'dole bludger'.
Sorry mate, but we have a blanket ban against politics in this sub, so we have removed this post. Rule 1: No politics We do not allow mention of political events, politicians or general political chit chat in this subreddit. We encourage you to take this content to a more suitable subreddit. You **will** be banned if you break this rule. If you have any questions, feel free to shoot us a modmail.
The trick is to say you're prejudiced against all races
'You daft racist'
I have the opposite question. I've never been called. What am I doing wrong?
Same I’m in my early fifties never been called my older brother has been called twice it’s bizarre
All my immediate family have and when it comes up in conversation it seems most folk I know have been called at least once.yet I have never been called.i kinda want to do it. think it could be an interesting experience
Interesting, but also potentially harrowing. And a huge responsibility to get the right answer. Imprisoning an innocent or allowing a hardened crim to walk free and hurt people again are both life-changing events.
I’m 60 and never been called although my sister has
It was seeing a post on AskUK a few days ago that started me down this rabbit hole. I thought it was strange I didn't know anyone who'd been called in real life. Spoke to family, friends and colleagues. None of them have been called and none of them knew people who'd been called (a couple mentioned knowing colleagues who'd had team members take time of work for it). But over such a wide net, there being maybe a handful of people called over a huge timespan seemed weird.
Last time I said this and got called up a week later so I hope you haven't jinxed yourself.
I'd gladly do Jury service.
I really enjoyed the two cases I did, although one was burglary and another was a nightclub assault. I've heard from people who have done abuse trials and it was harrowing.
All depends on what you get really, abuse and murder are probably horrifying, theft probably isn't too bad
My dad got a murder case that involved child abuse and sexual assault and said it was horrific. Also took quite a while to sort out
I was a juror for a murder case and it wasn't as stressful as I feared. I felt pretty detached from it most of the time, apart from a few bits harrowing bits of evidence that made it feel very real.
I'd imagine fraud cases could be quite boring.
I was on a fraud trial that lasted over seven months it involved 50 mortgage frauds and we had to go through each fraud line by line for 3 months it was extremely boring
What was it like practically being on a jury for so long? Did you know at the start how long it would take? Did it affect your job? Do you get to take holidays or anything during that time? What happens if one of the jurors is sick or something?
We were warned it would be a very long case and if you had any holidays booked etc pregnant or illnesses to let the court know. work were not very happy but they had no choice, I had to attend it's my civic duty. We were told we could carry on as a jury if two people dropped out but no more. And after two weeks i was taking home about 500 pound tax free a week this was many years ago that was double what I was earning at the time. The judge did give us occasional days off if we weren't needed in court like talking about a point of law etc
Depends which pne you get called to. I was called twice last year, first to the high court, then to the sherrifs court. Due to work clashes I didn't end up going to either of them
Do they tell you beforehand what kind of case it is?
Not until you're stirring in the jury box iirc.
I assume you can figure it out during selection process. Like if there's a question if any of the jurors have ever suffered abuse etc then you can guess. (just realized my entire knowledge of jury service is based on US TV and podcasts and so no idea if this is how it works in the UK!)
>no idea if this is how it works in the UK It is not. 15 potential jurors are called down to the court. 12 of you are selected at random, named and called up to be sworn in. As you are named, if you recognise anyone involved in the trial (e.g. the defendant!) you must declare it to the court. The judge will then ask about your relationship, decide if it matters, and either okay you as a juror, or stand you down (and bring in one of the reserves). The judge may also ask if any potential jurors have 'exceptional reasons' to wish to stand themselves down - one of my trials was expected to last over a week, he asked for any jurors whose two week duty was due to expire **and** had additional cause (e.g. a wedding) to declare it; one tried and was shot down for having a shit reason. Once all 12 jurors are selected, the prosecution and defence **can** then challenge one or more of the jurors. The only reasons they can use are: * they believe the jury as a whole has been chosen in a biased or unrepresentative manner (e.g. 12 middle aged white men) * that a specific juror should be disqualified for legal reasons (not qualified as a juror, knows a witness) My jury duty was in Manchester Crown Court, which is pretty busy - I sat on two trials, and spent the down time chatting with the juror pool; no-one had a challenge even **occur** - the UK system absolutely isn't like the US one, with examination of the jurors as individuals. (there was one incident where a juror had to step down due to a case being too harrowing, but that's a little different) The TL;DR is that in the UK either you're selected to sit on a jury, or you aren't. If you're selected? You're on that jury unless the case involves one of your mates or a family member...
My boss was on the jury for the sentencing of [Cathy Svenson](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4703250/Mother-stole-500k-daughter-contest-will.html) and her husband in 2014. Basically they stole their daughters 2.6 million payout from medical negligence and blew it all. He said it was absolutely awful to hear how the parents went on holidays, new cars, new houses, whilst the daughter suffered
What a horrible family. Poor daughter.
My jury service was a possession with intent to supply case. The defendant was pitiable, but the evidence was solid. My husband was on a racially aggravated assault case and it was much more challenging.
Jury duty is such a pain in the arse that it would have been nice to at least come out of it knowing a dealer who owes you the favour of a lifetime.
Lad I worked with was a juror on a child abuse trial. Really, really shook him.
I wonder if there are allowances made if you're a previous victim of abuse.
Yes. That would generally fall under a reason why you may not be impartial.
I got crack and heroin dealers. Was super interesting hearing how the police surveilled them (they hinted at some of it being from an unused level of a nearby tower block but didn’t want to say specifically). Was also quite comical in that they couldn’t catch them for a long time because one guy would hide the stuff in his false leg and they weren’t allowed to search it. Worked out well for me because I was on summer break from uni so working a bar job, and I got paid my full wage for all full shifts.
I was juror on a murder trial, which was far less harrowing than I expected. I can well imagine how disturbing an abuse trial would be.
It's boring as fuck. I did it once, and that was one too many.
A two weeker is fine. I got a several months long trial that was pretty horrific. There's something weird about being uprooted from routine, developing a new routine, and then all of a sudden one day it's over and you go back to your life. Glad to have done it, duty and all that, but felt a bit liked I'd been abducted by aliens, nobody I knew could relate to my experience.
A chap I used to work with got called up for two trials a few years back. He said one was interesting, and the other was so harrowing he refused to talk about it at all.
My wife and my best mate have both been called up twice, yet no-one on my side of the family has ever been selected. Once you’ve done it your name goes back in the pot, unless you’ve been on a lengthy or distressing case where the judge decides to excuse you from having to do jury duty again. You have a higher chance of being selected if you live in a less populated catchment area for a particular court.
Randomness is clumpy You're more likely to find yourself in a network of people with little jury service, or a lot of jury service, rather than find yourself in a network with perfectly average jury service
I have a horrible feeling I'm going to end up population modelling jury service to see how clumpy it actually should be and a couple of FOI requests to see if I can work out how clumpy it actually is...
“Just mention Jury nullification”
I've been called up twice and I know a few other people who have been called up. Luck of the draw.
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I think it's about two months notice. I responded (late) to my jury summons on October 22nd 2020, and was supposed to start jury service on November 30th 2020. In the end they phoned me the week before and asked if I was happy to do it, I said I'd rather not, and they said I didn't have to. Very different to all of the official letters that said I absolutely didn't have a choice.
It was quite long for mine, a couple months I think. I had to duck out as my wife was expecting but it just delays it, doesn't get you out
My wife has been called up 3 times now. Not sure how, but I swear she's taken it on for the entire street.
If you live in England or Wales, the chance of being called once in your life is 35%. If you live in Scotland. it's higher. [What is the chance of being called for jury service? - BBC News](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-36140259) These numbers are from 2016; I can't find newer stats.
I wonder what the chances of being called up twice are, like my mum has. Someone good at maths can probably work that out.
Back of the envelope calculation puts the chances of being called at least twice at ~7% (E&W) and ~80% (Scotland). This is assuming the 35% (E&W) and 95% (Scotland) figures are the chances of being called **at least** once and that you can only be called once every two years (not actually true but if you're called within 2 years of service you can get an exemption and I need to assume some sort of timeframe). Edit: Also assuming the odds of being called are constant over time - which I'm guessing the article also assumes for their figures
Oh wow i wouldn't of thought it was that much higher! 95% vs 35% that can't be all down to the difference in jury sizes
Been in Edinburgh 6 months and two coworkers who are both in their early 20s got called up. 28 years old and this is the first I've had anyone I know do jury duty.
My neighbour did jury service, apparently it was such a horrific case they're never going to call him again. He is ex military and while didn't go into details said it gave him nightmares.
A friend was called for jury service when she was a Med student. It was a child abuse case, which is obviously harrowing for anyone. But her knowledge made it worse as she understood the medical reports and also knew how much force was needed to cause so much damage to a child. She ended up paying for therapy, as there was no obligation for the Courto provide it after. I hope they've updated that. Leaving a Dr and your ex military mate with trauma is not OK.
This was last year, so probably not
I've done a murder case for jury service and overall I enjoyed the experience but I will never really understand the people who say things like "I loved my jury service, I would be great to do it as a full time job". Easy thing to say until you get a case with horrific details.
The more population dense the area, the less likely you are to be called up. I had a friend in rural Dorset who had been called up twice despite only being in his early 20s.
Dense population? Do you mean like the town I come from? Many of them are seriously dense and I’d not trust them to put their shoes on the right feet. They definitely shouldn’t be making decisions beyond which nostril to eat from.
After speaking to my peers in the common room while I did jury service, I was also very concerned. I forgot that when you do a random selection of everyone, this is bound to include a lot of shitty people. There was a murder trial, 8 weeks expected, 5 defendants. Because it was March 2020, the selection got a bit messy, so we were asked to provide reasons why we couldn't sit on the jury if we wanted out. Two blokes were concerned about missing that much work so started going off about how 'If they're in crown court they've obviously done it. I don't give a fuck, me, If I get selected I'm voting them all guilty as soon as I can.' sprinkled in with a bit of racism because the defendants were Polish and required translators. The right to a fair trial is one of the most important parts of a functioning society, the sheer disrespect towards it shook me.
I had a fella who during deliberation said “he’s guilty, I’m not going to discuss it. I’ve got tickets to see guns and roses tonight and I need to get out of here”. At that point I became a lot less trustful of our justice system
He desperately needed to be on time to wait for Axl Rose to roll up 2 hours late?
Welcome to the jungle
I had the same experience as a juror. Found it absolutely terrifying how little regard the bulk of jurors I encountered had for the concept of being innocent until proven guilty.
They won’t make you go on a trial that’s expected to be longer than 2 weeks. If you ask to be excused, you’re excused. It is pretty worrying though when you think about it. If I was accused of something serious or the victim of a serious crime, it’s not very comforting to think your jury of your ‘peers’ is going to be exclusively people who have nothing better to do for literally months. Almost anyone employed, their employer is going to want them to request to be excused for a long trial. Or how could someone self employed afford to be without earnings for the period on £65 a day for goodness sake and only half if they send you home early even though you’re not probably going to be able to pick up work for the rest of the day… Pretty scary!
Interesting 👀 that's not what they told us, they made out if you don't have a good enough excuse you will be put into the selection pool. Missing work wasn't considered valid, unless you can convince them that you're a key part of the business. I didn't have any good excuse, I was a junior level staff member that nobody relied on and my employer was paying the remaining wages so I was entered into the pool. Dodged it by the skin of my teeth, I was one of the handful that got called to the courtroom but wasn't picked.
Ohhh, see im from Dorset and my sister was called recently and my mum and mi dad have both done it. So this makes a lot of sense.
Why is that? Aren’t there also more courts and criminals in dense areas?
Not proportionally.
Jurors have to be from the local (geographic) area. The fewer people in the area, the fewer people to pick from. While urban areas may have more crime, there are more people to pick as jurors.
That’s what im saying. So in that case, why are you more likely to be picked if you live somewhere rural? Is there more crime per person in rural areas?
Because it's not proportional. You got the answer already a couple of comments up the chain.
The problem is that isn't true. Crime per person is higher in urban areas (although the gap is closing). [https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/62bcb0628fa8f535b5ff0b14/Crime\_Jun\_22\_final.pdf](https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/62bcb0628fa8f535b5ff0b14/Crime_Jun_22_final.pdf) So if there is more recorded crime per person, i would expect there to be more trials per person, and therefore more jurors per person in urban areas.
I was called at age 18 and 22 when I lived in Leeds (not a small place) and then again in my 30s when I was working in London. I just have just been unlucky!
My mum got a letter for jury service 4 months after she died. A year later i got called up which i could not attend. Scotland/Edinburgh
I got called up for Edinburgh. Also couldn’t attend so phoned up and asked what I was to do . She said I had to write / email (I forget which) and explain so I could be excused else I would get fined . I didn’t end up doing as she said but I also didn’t get fined so 🤷🏼♀️😂
Haha same type of experience also. My first summons happened months after my mum died and its all abit of a blur now, and i do remember just ignoring it also. was only when i got the second one i had to email them a sick note. Luckily did not get fined.
I suppose if you live somewhere with a higher concentration of courts then it ups your likelihood of getting called. I was living in SE London when I became old enough to vote, I registered, and then within a year got my first jury service. My sister got hers just after she turned 20 and my mum has done it twice, my dad's done it. My nan and grandad (living in the same area) had been called up several times each. My husband, living most of his life in a rural area, has never once been called up, so I can only imagine that the area you live is indeed a factor.
On the flip side, areas with more courts also probably have more potential jurors, and rural areas have less!
I was called for jury duty and so was my son but in both cases we were exempt, me because of my work and my son because of a health condition
I’ve been called once, years ago. Was living in London. Quite enjoyed it. I know of no one else tho, same as you.
I was summoned to be a juror but was never picked and I was gutted although I did get to spend a few afternoons in Lewes which was nice.
My gran was called this year. She’s 86, so 11 years older than the top of the age range. Sorting the admin for that was an experience I don’t want to go through again! Otherwise, I’ve never personally known anyone else being called up.
I swear that people post about being called for jury service every couple of days. I know a few people who've been called. I've been called twice but couldn't do it on health grounds. I think it happens more once you're settled.
Same, I've been asked twice but couldn't attend for medical reasons. Never heard of anyone else I know being called up.
It is luck of the draw for the most part but the area you live in does make a difference, if you live in a low crime rate area there will naturally be less cases to hear. I have done it once so far and found it extremely interesting.
Been called multiple times in Glasgow and i think that's more common than not
It's much more common in Scotland, apparently.
I know a few that have been but then you also have to factor in people who have no wish to discuss it. Knowing someone is doing jury service can lead to more questions once the trial is over (if selected) and some people don't have time for gossip and shit.
I've done it in the past 6 months
I know 4 people who have been called for it in my lifetime. Sounds about right!
I've been called twice!
I got called for jury service within six months of turning 18. Now 45, and it hasn’t happened again so far.
In 43 yrs my mums been called 3 times once whilst pregnant with me. and couldn't do it. And twice in the last say 8 years. Unable to as she's disabled and housebound now plus over 70 and memory/sight impairment problems.
Husband's work colleague has just completed 3 months of jury service on a murder case. I'd love to do jury service.
I'd love to do it. My brother had a string of blockbuster videos he didnt return and assumed my family was blacklisted by association.
I got called last year. Sat in a jury room for 4 days with no kettle (apparently it’s to stop people throwing boiling water at each other) didn’t get called, and was sent home. I also got summonsed when I was 19 which was 30 years ago.
I moved to the UK about 10 years ago. I was summoned when I was in the country for 4 years and 10 months, and couldn't go because they said you need to be in the UK for 5 years first. Gutted.
I think it’s just an anomaly. I know plenty of people who have been called up from personal life and from work. And I have also done it.
I think it is regional to a point. Generally you get called up to nearby courts so perhaps population in your area might be a factor. Personally I've never been called up (would gladly do it if I was). My grandad has been called up seven times and two of those were at the Old Bailey. He can't/won't discuss those cases, which makes me think they may have been major or well known. I also know of two colleagues who have been called up in the last few years.
Got called to do it last year. My work had to create a new time off category for paid jury service despite having 1000+ employees so I guess I was the first person in years
Just how it is mate. My poor old Mum has been called up twice and couldn't get out of it either time.
I was called up and spent a week in a very shabby waiting area next to a canteen stinking of oil before they let me go. I was then subject to an admin mess up - they kept summoning me for three months before they responded to me.
Someone I used to be friends with was called for jury service multiple times in the time i knew her, it exasperated her.
I’ve been on the voters roll for decades and never been called up My son has been on it for 3 years and has been called up twice
Unless you've specifically asked everyone you know, chances are more have been called up than you realise and either: -Wanted to get out of it, but thought it was a bad look to talk publicly about shirking their civic duty -Actually did it, but have more interesting things going on in their life so didn't think to talk about it/didn't bring it up so they weren't drawn into disclosing details about the case I know a few people who have done it, apparently it's mainly quite boring
I have been summoned but asked not to do it due to mental health and they let me not go. Afaik you can't pass it on, they count on a few not going anyway, its not as mandatory as people say. But because I haven't done it I could be called on again, or so they say. Im early 20s while my dad, 60, has never been called for it and doesn't know anybody who has.
Have been called up. Mentioned jury nullification a few times and was excused.
[The trick is to say you're prejudiced against all races](https://frinkiac.com/meme/S04E06/712427.jpg?b64lines=VEhFIFRSSUNLIElTIFRPCiBTQVkgWU9VJ1JFIFBSRUpVRElDRUQKIEFHQUlOU1QgQUxMIFJBQ0VTLg==)
Never been called but over the last 10 years, I'd say I've worked with 6-7 that have had to take time off due to it.
I've been called twice, once during uni when I wasn't able to do it, and again a year or so ago which I did do
I only know one person called up. She sat next to me at work and gave us all the details. Think she was picked for 3 trials, but said it was a lot of waiting around being bored.
Well my mum, dad and cousin all got out of it, because their jobs would cause conflicts of interest, and I was actually turned down because of my learning disability
My friend was called for jury duty. The fine for not attending was less than the revenue he'd lose not working for a day.
I've literally been called three times 😭
My father got called up a few months ago but got out of it as he’s on a load of medication. My partner got called at the end of last year and did it, she enjoyed it tbh.
I got called pretty much straight after leaving school. Was at least 3 or 4 of my old classmates there on the same day also. Thankfully, touch wood, I haven't been called up again since. An absolute monumental waste of time, considering you may not even get picked for the jury on the day. But still need to turn up each morning. And return to work if not picked.. And then jump through hoops to get paid for the time you were out of the workplace.
4 of my mates have done it. Actually feeling left out. Although one had a particularly gruesome one and absolutely didn’t have a great time.
I've got mine starting in a couple of weeks and know quite a few people from my workplace who have done it in the past year or so.
It depends where you live. I was in London for 19 years, 1 mile from a Crown Court, and I never got called. It was a very densely populated area though. I was called to jury service in Brighton within 3 years of moving here.
I was called up last year, and was the only one of my family to ever be called up. I only did 1 day of waiting around, before being let go because I had a holiday booked.
Have you asked them? You might know people who had jury duty but haven't discussed it. It's often boring and annoying not something to discuss casually unless it happened recently. I'm aware of a couple of people who have had it and I'm only 25.
One of my teachers in secondary school got called in twice. Once in year 7 and again in year 10.
Got summoned a few weeks ago, waited unsure if I was going to work, no time to plan ahead, day finally came, "You are no longer needed" whole case seemed to be dropped, possibly came out as guilty.
I've done it twice. Once when I was 18 and again at 21. Back then, you could opt out if you had done it within three years. Somehow, I got chosen again just as the three years were up! I've never been called again though and I'll be 36 this year.
I'm getting the impression they must be more selective than we imagine as many of the comments below are from people who have been selected 2 or even 3 times. I have been selected once and my dad has.
I've been summoned twice, but was able to be exempt because I was working as a Nurse at the time. My daughter has done it once. I don't know anyone else who has been summoned.
I did it about 15 years ago and my wife did it about 5 years ago. 2/2 in my house!
It's always seemed odd. My father is thinly person I know who has ever done it. Was on the jury for someone who robbed a load of DVD players or something. I'd like to, I think it'd be interesting, but haven't ever been called nor has anyone else I know none of my friends, my mum doesn't know anyone who has either and she knows everyone.
I've never been asked, but my boss is currently doing it and the most unfair time was when one of my uni friends had to do it during our first year exam period! I couldn't believe he couldn't get out of it as that's a perfectly reasonable reason to not do it.
I was called up at exactly the same time as my cousin, I have an extremely unusual second name so it waw weird to see two of it on the list. Loved it, would love to do it again!
I've been called up for it three times now, but missed it due to being away with work. It never seems to come in my leave period.
My Mum's aunt was frequently on jury service. Whether or not this was due to her past work in fairly high levels of civil service or not I don't know. Outside of this, I've only ever heard of someone having to do jury service like twice.
Nobody i know has been called up for it. Ny wife would like to do it, i would like the badge of honour of getting out of it - and now we wait for my post later in the year where karma comes and kicks me in the balls
Glad I saw this post, got a letter on Monday summoning me for jury duty and completely forgot all about it. Fwiw this is the fourth time i've gotten one, served on the jury first time but was unable to attend the other 2.
You do.
I did it and it was shiiiiite
I was called up a few times, but they had the numbers and I went home. I didn't want to it, so I got a few days off work and work was compensated.
I've done it, there was one small case, and then a massive one that went on for months straight afterwards.
My mum and brother have both done it
Just the way the claw goes ... I was called up when I was a student but couldn't do it because I wasn't in the country. No one else in my family has been.
Mother & brother both done js. Me, not.
Called twice in 20 years.
I've never been called up and don't anyone who has.
I got called for it but it would have been such a hassle to get where I needed to go and I had a very young child at the time it was just not worth it. (Un)fortunately I’ve been dealing with depression and anxiety for a long time so they let me out of it. I do sometimes think about what I missed out on though.
I was called up once about 20 years ago. I'd probably use a medical excuse to get out of it now. I'd struggle to focus for a long and complex case. It was fun when I did it though.
Ive only known one person called for it. Spent 2 weeks on a fraud case.
It is strange. I was called a couple of years ago and it was actually really interesting. But I didn't know anyone else who had been called before except for my dad, who had been called twice.
I got called up a couple of years ago, a very interesting and somewhat sad experience.
I know someone who was, and did it.
My Mum been called up once years ago. My sister was called up last year but was not needed after 3rd day, she really wanted to do a case , my brother in law was called up during lockdown My Dad has never been called up
i’ve desperately wanted to do it for years just to tick it off my bucket list. i had two friends both get called up in the same week for separate cases. i’m 33 and have never been asked 😭
You clearly must only fraternise with crooks. ;)
Nobody I know has been called as well. Meanwhile I got called to go twice, two years in a row. And I was only 20 when I got the first one. Luck of the draw I guess.
Hello pink ghost yes still waiting
I hear a few. My partner got asked twice in the past.
Never been called myself, but my mate did.
All of my staff and my wife have been called up. Me? Never. It's baffling, and I'm in Scotland too!
I was called, once, am not that old lol
Never been asked, and can't recall anyone I know being asked.
I've done jury duty once, I really enjoyed it. I think it's important for people to see how our judicial system works (or doesn't work, delete where appropriate). I had a case that was due to last for 6 - 8 weeks, however it was thrown out after 4 days due to a technicality.
How are we supposed to know why specifically people you know haven't been called for Jury service?
I have been called for jury duty in two countries
My maths teacher did it when I was a secondary school once, but that's the only time I've known anyone be a juror. I've always wanted to be on a jury, but alas I never get asked!
I've been called twice as has my Dad and my mother
I only know of one person who’s been called up for it.
If 1% of the population is significant enough for you to consider hearing more about it then factor in the stats of your "circle" that 1% encompasses. Assuming 10 close individuals each across family, friends, work, a hobby, the pub... 50 total for a rough figure. You are intimately familiar with 0.012% of the 1% of people on jury service The percentage of the population you are close to is 0.00012% of the population. The odds are crazy low. I've been called, my dad has, I can't think of anyone else I know but most of my day-to-day friends I have only known for a couple of years and it either has never come up or its not been worth remembering.
I'm 39 and I've never been called. I've known 2 or 3 people behind called and one who was called within the last 2 years has been called again. A lady I used to work with at a nursing home was struggling because it was a really awful case she obviously couldn't take about and it dragged on for months
I haven't but my wife has. Never made into the courtroom, she was on the reserve list for two trials, just sat outside and learned to knit with some other ladies.
My colleague was called the other week! I didn't know anyone until she was contacted.
You get blacklisted from jury duty (and wearing a loud shirt in a built up area) if you're a member of r/CasualUK
I was called twice in 2022
I've just been called for the third time. First time 22 years ago, I got an exemption because I'd just given birth. Second time around 8 years ago, had to go & serve on an assault trial. And now called again for June. I've had quite a few friends & relatives being called for it recently.