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Ontario|Government & Justice SystemGovernment & Justice System 712 Jury Duty Jury duty is an important part of the Canadian legal system because it gives citizens the opportunity to participate in bringing about justice. Jury duty can be for criminal or civil cases, although civil cases with juries are rare.
Normally, jury duty interrupts your life for a matter of days. In some cases it may involve weeks or months. Whether you get compensated for jury duty will depend on the amount of time you serve as a juror. The court is normally in session from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. daily, and jurors are permitted to go home at night. If you are required to stay late or overnight, accommodation and meals will usually be provided.
- What does it mean to get called for jury duty?
If you get a notice for jury duty it does not necessarily mean you will be selected to sit on a jury. Many people are chosen at random to make up a jury panel, which is a pool of people. From the panel, jurors are selected by lottery.
- Do jurors have the right to take time off work, or to be paid?
If you are required to serve jury duty, your employer must give you the time off, but does not have to pay your wages, unless it is part of your employment contract or collective agreement. In most cases, jury duty lasts for about a week, unless you are chosen for a complicated trial. As a juror, you will not be paid or provided with any meals for the first 10 days you serve. On the 11th day of jury duty, you will be paid $40 per day until the 50th day when you will be paid $100 per day for the rest of the trial.
- Getting excused from jury duty
If you are too ill to serve as a juror, or you cannot do it because of hardship, you can request that you be excused from jury duty by applying to the Sheriff as soon as possible. A judge will decide if you may be excused based on the seriousness of your situation.
For additional information about jury duty, contact the court house in your area which is listed in the Blue pages of the telephone book.
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