How does jury selection work?

With just under 200,000 people selected to serve on juries in 2023, it does spark the question of how did they become part of the jury?

When jurors are selected, a ballot from the electoral voting registers is used. This means everyone who has registered to vote is then shared with His Majesty's Courts and Tribunal Service (HMCTS). 

Each court will have a set number of jurors that they need. So the information that is provided is then used to randomly select the jury via a computer. 

It would be fair to assume that once you have served on a jury, you won’t need to serve again. However, this is not how it works. Thanks to the random selection process, it means that there is the possibility that you can serve on a jury more than once. 

You’ve been summoned, what’s next?

If you have been summoned to serve on the jury, you will receive the summons by post. When you receive the summons, you must respond within 7 days. Once this has been completed and if you meet the criteria, you will serve as a member of the jury. Being a jury member is not optional.

There are limited circumstances that will allow you to defer your service to another period in the following 12 months. In extremely rare circumstances, you can be excused from serving on the jury. 

Once you get to court, the random selection process isn’t over. A computer is used to select 12 people from those there. These 12 are then selected to be on the jury. Those who haven’t been selected are then sent back to the waiting area for the selection process of the next jury.