About Jury Duty Help
Jury Duty Help is a free, independent guide for people who just found a jury summons in the mailbox and aren’t sure what to do next.
Why we built it
A jury summons can be confusing. It uses legal language, it comes with a deadline, and it may threaten a fine if you ignore it. The practical questions come right after that. Can I postpone? Will I get paid? What do I tell my boss? What if I missed the date? The official answers exist, but they’re spread across 94 federal district courts, every state’s judiciary, and thousands of county clerks.
We collect the rules that apply everywhere, such as the federal Jury Selection and Service Act, and link straight to each state’s official jury page for the rules that don’t. We also give you tools to write the letters people most often need.
What we don’t do
We don’t sell anything to jurors, we don’t collect summons details, and we never ask for personal information. Real courts don’t ask for payment or sensitive information by phone or email either. If anyone does, see our guide to jury duty scams.
Who writes it
Jury Duty Help is written and maintained by a small editorial team at an independent web publisher. We are not lawyers, engineers, doctors, or government officials, and we do not claim to be. What we do is read the primary sources (statutes, agency guidance, university extension publications, and official court and health-department pages), turn them into plain steps, and link every claim back to where it came from.
How the site is paid for
The site is free to use and is supported by display advertising from Google. Advertisers do not choose or review our topics, and ads never change what a guide says. Read our editorial standards for how we pick sources, correct mistakes, and keep ads separate from content.
Tell us what we got wrong
Rules change and local details vary. If you spot an error or an out-of-date figure, please send us a note with a link to the source. We read every correction and date-stamp the fix.
Photo and video credits
Home page background video (aerial view of a county courthouse at dusk) by Jim Baker on Pexels, used under the Pexels license.