Jury Service in England and Wales: Eligibility, Pay and Verdicts

Jury service in England and Wales is a civic duty backed by law, not an optional invitation. If you are randomly selected from the electoral register and sent a jury summons, you are legally required to attend unless you are disqualified, or you are granted a deferral or an excusal. This guide explains who qualifies, who is barred from serving, what jurors are paid, and how a 12-person Crown Court jury actually reaches its verdict.

Who Can Serve: Eligibility Under the Juries Act 1974

Most people encounter jury service after receiving a summons out of the blue. Names are drawn at random from the electoral register by the Jury Central Summoning Bureau, so there is no way to volunteer, and no way to be picked specifically for a case that interests you.

Section 1 of the Juries Act 1974 sets the basic qualification. You must be:

• Aged 18 to 75 (that is, 18 up to your 76th birthday)
• Registered as a parliamentary or local government elector
• A resident of the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man for any period of at least 5 years since your 13th birthday

If you meet all three conditions, and none of the disqualifying grounds below applies to you, you are legally obliged to respond to your summons and attend when told to.

Who Is Disqualified From Jury Service

Schedule 1, Part 2 of the Juries Act 1974 sets out who is barred from serving, based mainly on a criminal record rather than personal circumstances.

Permanent disqualification applies if you have ever been sentenced to imprisonment (or a corresponding form of detention) for life, or to a determinate custodial term of 5 years or more. Once that threshold is crossed, you can never serve on a jury again, no matter how long ago the sentence was.

A 10-year disqualification applies if, at any time in the last 10 years, you served any part of a shorter custodial sentence, or you received a suspended sentence or a community order. For a custodial sentence, the 10 years run from the last time you served any part of it (in practice, your release), not from the date you were sentenced. For a suspended sentence or a community order, they run from the date it was passed or made.

You are also disqualified while on bail in criminal proceedings. Once your bail ends, whether through acquittal, sentencing or otherwise, the disqualification no longer applies, unless a custodial sentence or community order given at that point then triggers one of the grounds above.

Schedule 1, Part 1 adds grounds that have nothing to do with a criminal record. You are also disqualified while you are liable to be detained under the Mental Health Act 1983, resident in hospital because of a mental disorder, or under guardianship or a community treatment order under that Act, or if you lack the mental capacity to serve. A conviction in the last 10 years for one of the juror misconduct offences in sections 20A to 20D of the Act, such as researching the case, is a further ground.

If you are unsure whether a past conviction disqualifies you, the safe approach is to say so honestly on your jury summons reply rather than wait to be asked. Serving while knowingly disqualified is itself an offence.

What You Will Be Paid for Jury Service

Jury service is not paid a wage by the court, but you can claim back loss of earnings, plus travel and subsistence costs.

For the first 10 days of jury service, you can claim up to £64.95 a day for loss of earnings if you are at court for more than 4 hours (up to £32.47 a day if you are there for 4 hours or less). If your service runs longer than 10 working days, the daily cap rises to up to £129.91 a day for more than 4 hours at court (up to £64.95 a day for 4 hours or less).

These figures are ceilings on what you can claim, not a guaranteed flat payment. You claim your actual net loss of earnings up to the relevant daily limit, and reasonable travel and subsistence costs are reimbursed separately. Because these amounts are reviewed periodically, it is worth checking the current rates on GOV.UK when your summons arrives rather than assuming last year's figures still apply.

Postponing or Being Excused From Jury Service

Two different routes exist if the timing genuinely does not work, and they are not interchangeable.

Deferral lets you push your jury service back to a new date, once only, within the next 12 months. When you reply to your summons, you explain your reasons and suggest three possible alternative dates that would work for you.

Excusal is a different matter and is only granted in exceptional circumstances, for example a serious illness or disability that prevents you serving, being a full-time carer for someone with an illness or disability, or being a new parent with no other workable date in the next 12 months. You may also be excused if you have already completed jury service in the last 2 years. Excusal applications often need supporting evidence, such as a letter from a doctor.

Ignoring a summons is not a safe third option. Failing to attend without a reasonable excuse is an offence under section 20 of the Juries Act 1974, and a Crown Court judge can impose a fine.

Inside the Jury Room: 12 Jurors, Majority Verdicts and Deliberation Time

A Crown Court trial jury has 12 members. Contrary to a common assumption, the verdict does not have to be unanimous.

Under section 17 of the Juries Act 1974, once the trial judge gives a majority direction, a verdict of 10-2 or 11-1 is acceptable (or 9-1 if the jury has been reduced to 10 members, for example because a juror was discharged partway through the trial). With 11 or 12 jurors, at least 10 must agree; with 10 jurors, at least 9 must agree. The same numbers apply whether the verdict is guilty or not guilty.

The Act also sets a floor on how long the jury must be given before a majority verdict can even be considered. Section 17 requires that the jury has had "at least two hours" to deliberate, and in practice a period the judge considers reasonable in the circumstances of the case. You will sometimes see the figure "2 hours and 10 minutes" quoted as if it were the legal minimum. It is not in the statute. That more specific figure comes from judicial guidance in the Crown Court Compendium, the practice guidance judges work from, not from the Juries Act itself. The only fixed statutory floor is the two hours set out in section 17.

This guide explains the general position on jury service in England and Wales; a specific question about your own summons is best directed to the court staff and guidance notes that come with it. For the very different jury system used north of the border, see jury service in Scotland. If you are facing a criminal charge and want to understand how legal aid works, see legal aid eligibility.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I refuse to do jury service in England and Wales?

Not generally. If you are eligible and not disqualified, jury service is a legal obligation once you are summoned. Your options if the timing is a genuine problem are to ask for a deferral to a later date, or, in exceptional circumstances, to ask to be excused. Simply ignoring a summons is an offence under section 20 of the Juries Act 1974.

What disqualifies someone from jury service?

Under Schedule 1 of the Juries Act 1974, a custodial sentence of 5 years or more disqualifies you for life. A shorter custodial sentence, a suspended sentence, or a community order within the last 10 years disqualifies you for 10 years. Being on bail in criminal proceedings also disqualifies you while the bail continues. You are also disqualified while liable to be detained under the Mental Health Act 1983, resident in hospital because of a mental disorder, or under guardianship or a community treatment order under that Act, if you lack the mental capacity to serve, or if you were convicted in the last 10 years of a juror misconduct offence.

How much does jury service pay?

There is no wage as such. You can claim loss of earnings up to £64.95 a day for the first 10 days (more than 4 hours at court) and up to £129.91 a day after that, plus travel and subsistence, subject to the current GOV.UK rates at the time you serve.

Can I change the date of my jury service?

Yes, once. You can ask to defer your jury service to a different date within the next 12 months by replying to your summons with your reasons and 3 possible alternative dates. Being excused altogether is a separate, higher bar reserved for exceptional circumstances.

Do all 12 jurors have to agree on a verdict?

No. Once the judge gives a majority direction, a verdict of 10-2 or 11-1 is acceptable under section 17 of the Juries Act 1974 (or 9-1 if the jury has dropped to 10 members). Unanimity is the starting expectation, but it is not a legal requirement.

Is there really a fixed '2 hours and 10 minutes' jury deliberation rule?

No. The Juries Act 1974 itself only requires 'at least two hours' of deliberation before a majority verdict can be considered. The more specific figure of 2 hours and 10 minutes comes from judicial practice guidance in the Crown Court Compendium, not from the statute.

What happens if I ignore a jury summons?

Failing to attend without a reasonable excuse is an offence under section 20 of the Juries Act 1974. A Crown Court judge can impose a fine, and repeated non-attendance can escalate to contempt of court proceedings.