Summoned for Jury Duty. What should I expect?

There is no dress code, just try to look normal.

Your job must pay you.

Day 1 you may get sambos, but the rest of the time there is a choice of 3 options, and they will try to accommodate any allergies.

I don't think they sequester juries any more.

No dress code. Just don't wear a tracksuit/football jersey etc.

You'll walk through airport style security at the entrance to the building and be brought into jury area by jury minders. Will be free tea/coffee provided. They'll take attendance and then start picking jurors for cases. If you don't get picked for a case you'll usually be let go by lunchtime at the latest.

Lots of info here:

http://www.courts.ie/courts.ie/library3.nsf/pagecurrent/58D1622F4C8923EB80258010005635DF?opendocument&l=en

I found it a worthwhile experience and wouldn't mind doing it again. Most home insurance policies will have a payment per day you receive for your time on a jury, look in to it, Axa give you €20 a day...
https://www.axa.ie/help/question/does-home-insurance-cover-jury-service/


Good bits
Very interesting insight in to the workings of law.
Food is very nice.
Time off work can be a nice distraction for a few days or weeks.

Bad bits
When you leave the court you are out in the general population, you could be literally on the same LUAS or bus as those directly involved in the court case.
The jury can be asked to leave the court multiple times during the day where arguements can be made as to what evidence the jury is allowed take in to account, this can be mindnumbingly boring waiting around.
You might not get picked for the jury but have to go in for I think the first 3 or 4 days until they fill their quote of jurors for the case.
Some of your fellow jurors can be bellends and not of a sufficient knowledge base to be deciding anything beyond what colour socks they should be wearing.
Case I had was fairly tame, I wouldn't like to be doing a serious assault or abuse case.


I'd recommend beforehand you take a visit in to the court and sit in the public gallery, for most cases anyone can just walk in and observe, will give you an idea what to expect.

Effects wrote: »

What's your level of education? You'll be objected to if you have a third level education.

They won't know that....

By the looks of it you have only been called for selection, you might not get picked for the actual jury. Most people like to find a way out of it if they do get called up, but if you'd like to take part, more power to you.

Attending court is one of the most entertaining things you can do for free in Ireland.

Try to keep track of what’s happening and you will get to see first hand what a complete joke the justice system in Ireland is.

Dress like a scumbag and you might get objected to if your number comes up.

There is always some self riotous man on a mission type that has watched to many movies and wants to be the head juror, they are fun to watch.

Best of luck trying to be impartial when you see some of the scum that are in court with 50+’previous convictions while a smart lawyer does his best to get them off on some technicality.

Quantum Erasure wrote: »

what happens if you just ignore a jury summons? asking for a friend...

http://www.courts.ie/Courts.ie/Library3.nsf/pagecurrent/142B164CF1204B8C8025801000523400?opendocument&l=en

Failure to attend and other offences.
The following offences are punishable by fines:
» Failing to attend for jury service without reasonable excuse, or not being available when called upon to serve as a juror or being unfit for service by reason of drink and drugs.

» Making or causing to be made on your behalf false representations.

» Serving on a jury knowing you are ineligible or disqualified.

» Giving false or misleading answers to the presiding judge regarding your qualification for jury service.

» Making or causing to be made on behalf of a person summoned as a juror any false representation to enable him or her to evade jury service.

The full text of these offences are set down in Part V of the Juries Act, 1976 as amended by Part 6 Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2008.

John DoeReMi wrote: »

I was called once in my twenties and have never been called since (I'm now in my fifties). Which I find odd as I've always been registered to vote. Isn't the electoral register how they pick potential jurors?

Yes, but many people on the register will go their entire lives without ever being called to jury service. The number of jurors required is a tiny fraction of the number of names on the register, and names are drawn from the register at random. Having been called once, you've already been called an above-average number of times.

I was called up this January.. theres about 300 people called so the odds of your name being one of the 19 called is here nor there.

I on the other hand was first called out..

I wore jeans and a jumper (line up ladies)

You go in and the council eye you up and down. They turned away a few people dressed in hoodies and trackies.

The judge asks whether you can be around for the duration of the trial or not. You're sworn in and thats that.

I got to listen to Margaret Bolster who imo is one of the most amazing women in Ireland.

I was there for 11 days in total. Same restaurant every day with about 7 things on the menu. All paid for bar a bottle of coke one day.

11 days waa tedious. It was a murder trial.

Iirc the mr moonlight case was 13 weeks long.

Cases that last longer than "a couple of weeks" are extremely rare, and most are much shorter than that - a day, two days, maybe three.

You've no way of knowing, until you are actually selected for a particular case, how long the case might be. If it looks like being a long case they will filter the potential jurors so as to exclude anyone who might not be in a position to stay the course. But "I don't want to serve on a long case" probably wouldn't be enough to get you out of it; there'd need to be a concrete reason why you couldn't.