Voting & Civil Rights

The following question was originally submitted to John Roska, a lawyer Someone who represents clients in courts or who gives legal advice and writer for the weekly column "The Law Q&A" in the Champaign News Gazette. The article has been updated to include changes in the law and additional information.

Question

How can I get out of jury duty A legal obligation to do something ? I got summoned, but I can’t afford to take time away from work. Is there some procedure I can go through to be excused?

Answer

You can ask to be excused for "undue hardship." Whether you will be excused is up to your local county board, jury commission, or jury administrator. Sometimes you need prior approval of the chief judge of the relevant judicial circuit. Just wanting to "get out" of jury duty won’t work.

If you’re only temporarily unable to serve Giving court documents to someone , you may receive a deferment for a later month. Temporary deferment could help if it’s harvest time, or if you’re in the middle of a major project. Deferment usually takes a phone call to the circuit clerk The office that takes care of files and documents for circuit court cases or a request on the form some counties ask you to return when you’re summoned.

If you need a long-term excuse, you must show that jury duty would cause "undue hardship" for you. The Illinois Jury Act says getting out of jury duty depends on your:

• Job
• Business affairs
• Physical health
• Family situation
• Active duty status in the Illinois National Guard or Illinois Naval Militia, or
• Other personal affairs

A judge will excuse any nursing mother from jury duty upon request. You should be prepared to provide documents to show why you need to be excused from jury duty. 

You may be excused for a "family situation" if you are the "primary caregiver of a person with a mental or physical disability A substantial impairment that functionally limits a person in carrying out major life activities, such as walking, lifting, seeing, or learning. , a person with a medically diagnosed behavior problem, or a child under age 12. However, this is only if "no reasonable alternative care" is possible. This means that parents of young children may have a valid jury duty excuse.

You may also be removed from the jury summons A notice to a defendant that a lawsuit against them was filed in a court and that the defendant has to show up in court list if you prove that you have a total or permanent disability.

Counties with 75,000 people or more have jury commissions that decide who gets excused from jury duty. Champaign County’s commission meets one day a month, and people can show up to present their case to be excused. In Cook County, a circuit court The lowest level of court in Illinois employee may act as a jury commission. In other counties, a board makes the decision.

While the court system tries to accommodate , jury duty is taken seriously. Expect to document your request for an excuse and be ready to serve in the future. Most counties do not want to excuse able people forever.

The jury list that is used to summon jurors consists of registered voters, licensed drivers, and State ID card holders. Illinois law says that jurors must live in the county that summons them; be 18 years of age, be a U.S. citizen, and be "free from all legal exception, of fair character, of approved integrity, of sound judgment An official decision by a court that ends the dispute between parties , well informed, and able to the understand the English language, whether in spoken or written form or interpreted into sign language."

If you do want to serve on a jury, Illinois courts protect you. If you are qualified and able to serve on a jury, you can't be excluded based on your:

• Race
• Color
• Religion
• Sex
• National origin
• Sexual orientation; or
• Economic status.

If you received a jury summons and need accommodation for a disability, you can request accommodation from the court.