What Should I Do if I Forget Jury Duty?

Most areas require that citizens be available to serve as jurors in court, as jury duty is considered one of the main civic responsibilities. Of course, you might never get selected as part of the jury, but you still need to be available in case you are needed, which is why there are typically legal consequences of missing jury duty. In fact, a warrant may be issued for your arrest if you forget jury duty, and you may have to pay large fines unless you can provide a good reason for missing your date of legal service. The first step after you forget jury duty is to call the court as soon as you realize the error, as you may be able to plead your case without any consequences. Despite the possibility of legal penalties, it is likely that you will just be scheduled to appear in jury duty on a different date.

It is typically understandable for some people to forget jury duty, as the notice is usually mailed out weeks or even months prior to the scheduled court date. Thus, you should be aware that you are likely not the only person to have accidentally missed jury duty. If you have the summons, it is usually advised that you call the phone number to the court, which should be listed. If, however, you have misplaced the summons, you can typically find the phone number on the county court's website.

Let the court employee who answers know that you have missed your jury duty court date. You are likely not the first person to forget jury duty, and as long as it comes across that it was an honest mistake, the employee should be able to schedule you for a different date. Of course, make it a priority to do everything possible to remember the new date so that this does not occur again. Note that if you cannot get ahold of anyone on the phone, you should consider leaving a message with a brief explanation of what happened, as well as a number to reach you.

If, on the other hand, you ignore the summons and then neglect to contact the court, you could face legal action. For example, you may have to pay hefty fines if you ignore the initial summons, especially if you also ignore the court's attempts to contact you after you forget jury duty. If you do not call the court soon after the missed jury duty, you also face the possibility of having a warrant issued for your arrest due to contempt of court, though this is considered a rare consequence.