By James Stevens, Director and Solicitor, Go To Court Lawyers. Last reviewed 10 April 2026.
Key points
- Who: anyone on the NSW electoral roll can be placed on the jury roll for 12 months and summoned, usually about a month ahead. Juries sit in the District and Supreme Courts.
- You must attend unless you have been excused or told you are not needed. Check after 4:30pm the day before, through the juror portal or on 1300 780 199. Not attending can bring a fine of up to $2,200.
- Asking to be excused: apply at least 10 business days before your date, with supporting documents. The outcome takes about 10 working days; without one, you must still attend. You can also ask on the day.
- Who cannot serve or can opt out: lawyers, police and people with certain criminal history cannot serve; practising doctors, dentists and pharmacists, clergy, full-time carers and others can claim an exemption. There is no upper age limit.
- Pay: $106.30 a day for days 1 to 10; from day 11, $247.40 if you are employed or self-employed and $106.30 if not; plus 30.7 cents a kilometre for travel.
- Your job: your employer must release you and cannot make you use your leave, dismiss you, or make you work on jury days. Full-time and part-time employees get make-up pay from their employer for the first 10 days.
- For advice about a jury fine or an employer problem, call 1800 577 015 at any hour: free general legal information, and a 60-minute consultation with a lawyer who practises in NSW for a fixed $295.
In New South Wales, anyone on the electoral roll can be summoned for jury service in the District or Supreme Court and must attend unless excused, or face a fine of up to $2,200; jurors are paid $106.30 a day for the first 10 days and, from day 11, $247.40 a day if employed, and employers must release staff for jury service and cannot make them use their own leave.
Checked on 23 October 2026 against the NSW Sheriff's Office jury service pages, its 2026 sample summons and eligibility fact sheet, the Fair Work Ombudsman and the Fair Work Commission.
How you are called
- Notice of inclusion: names are drawn at random from the NSW electoral roll and placed on the jury roll for 12 months. During that time you may be summoned. If you are not eligible to serve (see below), ask through the juror portal to be removed from the roll, with supporting documents. The Sheriff's eligibility fact sheet says people who can claim an exemption have 21 days to ask.
- Summons: a letter telling you which court to attend, the date and time, the estimated length of the trial you might be chosen for, and how to apply to be excused. It is usually sent about a month before your date, but can arrive closer to it. It is a legal document you must obey.
- As soon as it arrives: log in to the juror portal to enter your bank details (jury payments are made only by electronic transfer), check your contact details and turn on SMS notifications, because dates and times can change. If you work, tell your employer, including the estimated trial length.
- The day before: after 4:30pm, check that you are still needed, through the juror portal or on the Juror Information Line, 1300 780 199. For a Monday, the information is available from 4:30pm on the Friday before.
On the day
- Bring: your summons, photo identification and, if you want to ask to be excused, your supporting documents.
- Your privacy: after security screening you are given a juror card with a number. Your name and address are not used in the selection process or in court.
- Waiting: you can use your phone while you wait, but you must stay inside the courthouse. Taking photographs, or recording sound or images, anywhere in a NSW courthouse is an offence under the Court Security Act 2005.
- Selection: when a trial is ready, juror numbers are drawn at random. The prosecution and the defence can each challenge a juror without giving a reason. If you are challenged, you may have to stay in case you are needed for another trial. The jurors chosen take an oath or an affirmation.
- Access needs: if you need help such as a hearing loop or wheelchair access, call 1300 679 272 at least 7 days before your date.
Juries sit in the District Court and the Supreme Court, in more serious criminal trials and in civil cases involving large claims.
Who cannot serve, and who can claim an exemption
Anyone on the NSW electoral roll can be put on the jury roll. There is no upper age limit, and the Sheriff's Office says adjustments can be made for jurors with a disability where possible. The lists below summarise the Sheriff's 2026 summons; the full lists are in Schedules 1 and 2 of the Jury Act 1977.
| You cannot serve if you are, for example | You can claim an exemption if you are |
|---|---|
| The Governor, a judicial officer, a member of Parliament or of the Executive Council, or the Ombudsman or a deputy or assistant Ombudsman | A minister of religion, member of the clergy or vowed member of a religious order |
| An Australian lawyer, whether or not you practise | A practising doctor, dentist or pharmacist |
| A member or employee of a law enforcement or integrity agency (such as NSW Police, the AFP, the NSW Crime Commission, ICAC or LECC); a non-administrative employee of the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Crown Solicitor's Office or the Ombudsman; a public-sector paralegal in criminal cases; or someone who held one of these positions in the past 3 years | Employed full-time (not casually or as a volunteer) in fire, ambulance, rescue or other emergency services |
| Working, or in the past 3 years worked, in Corrective Services NSW, the State Parole Authority or another body with direct access to inmates or their information | Living with and caring full-time for a person who is sick, infirm or disabled |
| Convicted of an offence punishable by life imprisonment, a terrorism offence, a public-justice offence or a sexual offence | Someone who served as a juror in the last 3 years, or attended for jury service in the last 12 months and was not selected |
| Someone who served a prison sentence in the last 7 years (10 years if the sentence was 3 months or more), or was released from juvenile detention in the last 3 years | Entitled to an exemption because of previous lengthy jury service |
| Currently subject to an order such as parole, a community correction or supervision order, or an apprehended violence order; or awaiting trial or sentence | |
| Currently disqualified from holding a NSW driver licence for 12 months or more (a licence suspension does not count), or an undischarged bankrupt |
An exemption is a right you can claim, not a bar: you can still serve if you want to. Claims and requests need supporting documents, and the Sheriff's fact sheet says some are declined because the documents were missing. It also says you have the right to appeal to the Local Court.
Asking to be excused
If you are not excluded and have no exemption, you can still apply to be excused if serving would cause you undue hardship or serious inconvenience, or would be incompatible with your health or circumstances. The Sheriff decides each application under section 14 of the Jury Act 1977.
- When: as soon as possible, and at least 10 business days before your date. If your summons arrives at short notice, go to court on your date, where you may be able to apply.
- How: through the juror portal (the Sheriff says this is the best way), by email to sheriff.jury@dcj.nsw.gov.au, by posting the form attached to your summons to NSW Sheriff's Office, Locked Bag 5019, Alexandria NSW 2015, or in person at a District Court before your date. Send copies of documents, not originals.
- The outcome takes about 10 working days. Check it in the juror portal or on 1300 780 199. Don't assume you have been excused: if you have no outcome by your date, you must still attend.
- On the day: you can give your reasons, with documents, to the Sheriff's staff before you receive your juror card, or ask the judge when you are called into court. If your reasons are about your health, or would embarrass or distress you if made public, you can put them in writing and ask for them to be handed to the judge. Raise them when the judge invites you to, before the jury is chosen. No allowance is paid if you attend and ask to be excused.
- Your employer cannot ask for you to be excused, but can give you a letter explaining why your absence would be difficult for the business. The Sheriff takes it into account and may excuse you on that occasion for a short time, though you may be called again within weeks or months. You need the letter before your summons date: the Sheriff's Office says an employee cannot be excused once selected.
- It may come back: while your name is on the jury roll you can be summoned again, with no limit on the number of times.
- False or misleading information in an application can bring a fine of up to $5,500.
| Reason | Documents the Sheriff gives as examples |
|---|---|
| Parent or guardian of children under 18 | A copy of your youngest child's birth certificate and, if you work, a letter from your employer showing your hours |
| Caring full-time for a sick or disabled person | A current carer's card or a current doctor's letter |
| Illness, injury or disability | A doctor's letter, a current workers compensation certificate, or a current disability pension card |
| Pregnancy | A letter from your doctor or midwife |
| Sole trader | Your ABN certificate or ABN |
| Sole director of a company | The ABN and an accountant's letter confirming the company has one director, how many employees it has, or the severe impact on the business |
| Work commitments | A letter from your employer setting out the essential or unusual commitments and the impact |
| Travel booked before the summons | Your itinerary or tickets |
| Lectures or exams | A timetable or enrolment letter |
| Moved to another jury district, interstate or overseas | Proof of address |
| Unable to read or understand English | A statutory declaration (the Sheriff has a form for this) |
| Other good cause | Current documents and a letter setting out your reasons |
You can also include a statutory declaration with your application. It must be witnessed by an authorised witness, such as a justice of the peace, a notary public or an Australian legal practitioner.
If you don't attend
- The fine: if you don't attend and have not been excused, the Sheriff can send you a fine of up to $2,200.
- Challenging it: you can appeal the fine with a valid explanation backed by documents, or have it reviewed by a magistrate at a Local Court. If the review fails, the magistrate may impose the maximum, $2,200.
- Unpaid fines go to Revenue NSW, which can increase the amount you owe.
After you attend or serve
- Attended but not chosen: if you come to court and make yourself available but are not selected, you are exempt from jury service for 12 months.
- Served on a jury: you have the right to be exempt for 3 years.
- In either case you can ask to stay on the jury roll; the Sheriff's staff can arrange it on the day.
Juror pay
| Days of the trial | Daily allowance | Who |
|---|---|---|
| Days 1 to 10 | $106.30 | All jurors |
| Day 11 to the end of the trial | $247.40 | Jurors who are employed, including the self-employed (you will need documents showing your self-employment) |
| Day 11 to the end of the trial | $106.30 | Jurors who are not employed |
- Travel: if you make yourself available, 30.7 cents a kilometre from your postcode to the courthouse, up to 100 km, each day.
- Meals: selected jurors are given one meal a day (most dietary needs can be met), or you can bring your own lunch and claim $6.95 a day.
- No allowance is paid if you attend and ask to be excused, or for your summons day if you were at court for less than 4 hours.
- Casual employees are not paid the employed rate. Public servants are paid by their agency and do not receive jury payments.
- How it is paid: weekly, by electronic transfer to the account you enter in the juror portal. Because payments are processed mid-week, your first payment may seem to be missing one or more days; they are paid the following week.
The rates are set under the Jury Regulation 2022; the Sheriff's payment page was last updated on 20 August 2025. The allowance is meant to reduce hardship, not to replace your wage.
Your job and your pay from work
Under the Jury Act 1977, as amended in 2024, your employer must release you for jury service. "Employee" includes full-time and part-time staff, and casuals who have been regular casual employees for the past 12 months. Your employer cannot:
- make you use your own leave, such as annual or sick leave, for jury service, including the day you attend court on the summons;
- dismiss you, injure you or alter your position because of jury service;
- ask you to work on a day you are serving as a juror; or
- ask you to work extra hours to make up the time.
An employer that breaks these rules can be fined up to $22,000 (a company) or $5,500 (an individual) under section 69 of the Jury Act.
Under the national employment rules (the National Employment Standards in the Fair Work Act 2009), jury duty is a kind of community service leave, which every employee can take, casuals included. It covers jury selection and reasonable travel and rest time.
- Tell your employer as soon as possible how long you expect to be away, and give evidence of your jury service if asked.
- Full-time and part-time employees are paid by their employer for the first 10 days they are away. If your employer asks, you must show that you have taken the steps needed to get the court's payment and how much it is (even if nothing). Your employer then pays the difference between the court's payment (not counting expense allowances such as travel) and your base pay for the ordinary hours you would have worked. If you don't give that evidence when asked, your employer does not have to pay you for those days.
- Casual employees have no right to pay from their employer under the national rules, but an award, enterprise agreement or contract may give one.
- Check your award, agreement or contract: it may give you more than the minimum.
- If you are dismissed or treated badly: the Fair Work Commission lists taking leave among the reasons for which an employer must not take harmful action against you. A dismissal application has a strict 21-day deadline, extended only in exceptional circumstances, so get advice without delay.
Your responsibilities as a juror
- Decide only on the evidence given in court and the judge's directions. Do no research of your own: online, on social media, in print or by asking others. Questions go to the judge.
- If you know anyone involved (a witness, the accused, family, a lawyer or a police officer), tell the judge by a note through the court officer as soon as you realise. The names are read out at the start, so raise it before the jury is chosen.
- Discuss the case only in the jury room, with every juror present. Not with family or workmates, even on days the court is not sitting.
- Post nothing about the trial, or your role in it, on social media.
- Notebooks are handed in each day and destroyed at the end of the trial.
- Don't visit the scene unless the court arranges a jury view.
- Support afterwards: the Sheriff's Juror Support Program offers free counselling after the trial; ask on 1300 679 272.
Free help
| Service | Number | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| NSW Sheriff's Office, Courts Service Centre (jury questions) | 1300 679 272 | 9am to 4:30pm, Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays |
| Juror Information Line (do you still need to attend?) | 1300 780 199 | Updated after 4:30pm the day before your date |
| LawAccess NSW (Legal Aid NSW) | 1300 888 529 | 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays |
| Fair Work Infoline (pay and leave) | 13 13 94 | See fairwork.gov.au |
Jury service works differently in each state. See our pages for Queensland, Victoria, Western Australia, Tasmania and the ACT, or our guide to criminal law across Australia.
How Go To Court Lawyers can help
Our free line, 1800 577 015, answers at any hour. Jen, our AI legal information assistant, gives general legal information and takes your details; Jen is not a lawyer and does not give advice about your case. A 60-minute consultation with a lawyer who practises in New South Wales is a fixed $295, by phone, video or in person where the lawyer offers it. The lawyer can advise on an application to be excused or a fine for not attending, and on what to do if your employer refused to release you, made you use your leave, withheld make-up pay or dismissed you because of jury service. Requests are taken at any hour; how soon a lawyer can see you depends on who is available. Request a $295 consultation.
General information only, not legal advice. Updated 23 October 2026. Checked against the NSW Sheriff's Office jury service pages (about jury service; what is a summons and what is a notice of inclusion, both updated 16 June 2026; how to apply to be excused, updated 15 September 2026; payment for jury service, updated 20 August 2025; juror responsibilities, updated 2 September 2025; what employers and employees need to know, updated 25 November 2025; contact us), its 2026 sample summons and its fact sheet on eligibility for jury service; the Fair Work Ombudsman's jury duty page; and the Fair Work Commission's general protections and unfair dismissal application pages, on 23 October 2026. The Jury Act 1977 itself could not be read on the NSW legislation website that day; section numbers are as the Sheriff's Office cites them.