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THE JUROR SUMMONS SHOULD PROVIDE USEFUL INFORMATION TO THE POTENTIAL JUROR AND REQUIRE OF THE JUROR ONLY THAT INFORMATION MANDATED BY STATUTE. A STANDARDIZED SUMMONS FORM SHOULD BE CREATED FOR USE AND MODIFICATION BY ANY JURISDICTION.
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Information to
Provide to the
Prospective Juror
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The summons form is the prospective juror’s introduction to jury service and often his or her first encounter with the judicial system. It is important that the summons form is clear and that it provides the prospective juror with as much information as possible about upcoming jury service. Recommendation 9 elaborates on the kinds of information that may be provided.
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Service Rescheduling Information
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Potential jurors should also be provided space on the summons form to request rescheduling of service as well as exemption from service. The summons should spell out under what circumstances rescheduling or exemption from service will be allowed.
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Required Qualifying Information
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The summons form is also an information gathering tool. Prospective jurors must answer certain mandatory questions to determine whether they are qualified for jury service. This information allows the summoning court to determine whether statutory requirements for service are met such as minimum age, citizenship, residency status, ability to communicate in English, and criminal conviction status.
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Administrative/
Biographical
Information
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The summons also requests information about the juror, such as address and telephone numbers, which the court uses for administering its jury system. In addition, the summons may ask biographical questions which provide information to assist the attorneys in determining if a juror can be fair and impartial in an upcoming trial.
We recommend that any information requested by the summons other than the qualifying requirements should be listed as optional.
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Protection
of Privacy
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In accordance with section (a) of the American Bar Association Standard 20 on juror privacy (see Appendix 4), the juror summons should differentiate between information collected for the purpose of juror qualification, jury administration, and jury selection. To facilitate the protection of a juror’s privacy, we recommend that the summons be designed so that the different types of information can be easily separated into sections which would then be provided only to the appropriate parties.
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Retention Schedules
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Appropriate retention schedules should be determined for each kind of information provided on the summons.
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References:
RCW 2.36.070 (listing qualifications for jury service).
District of Columbia Jury Project, Juries for the Year 2000 and Beyond: Proposals to Improve the Jury Systems in Washington D.C., pp. 3-4 (1998) (proposing that citizens receive substantial information concerning jury service).
CrR 6.2 (providing for a general orientation for all jurors when they report for duty including a juror handbook and juror information sheet).
American Bar Association’s Jury Standard 20 (see Appendix 4 for the A.B.A.’s commentary on privacy issues related to summons and questionnaires).
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