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Juries Act 1981

Jury lists and panels

13: Summoning of jurors

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"What happens when you're called to be a juror in court"

Illustration for Juries Act 1981

When you are called for jury service, the Registrar chooses your name from a list. The Registrar makes sure you have the right information to attend court. You will be told when to come to court. If you are summoned for jury service, you must serve for the whole week. But you might not have to serve if the Registrar excuses you under section 14B or section 15, or if a Judge excuses you under section 16 or discharges your summons under section 16AA. If you are on a jury and the trial goes past the end of the week, you must keep serving until the trial finishes or the court lets you go.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM44801.

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13Summoning of jurors

  1. Where jury trials are to be held in any court, the Registrar must compile a panel from the jury list, using the method determined in accordance with the jury rules, containing a sufficient number of jurors, and must summon those jurors to attend the court for the purposes of the trials.

  2. The Registrar must ensure that the only jury list information about a person that is included on the panel is the panel information about the person.

  3. The Registrar shall, before issuing any such summons, take all reasonable steps to ensure that the name of any person referred to in section 7 or section 8 is struck off the panel.

  4. Every person who is summoned for jury service shall be liable to serve until the end of the week for which that person was summoned.

  5. Subsection (3) does not apply to a person who is summoned for jury service if—

  6. the Registrar has, following an application under section 14B, permitted the person to defer that person's jury service and—
    1. the person is summoned under a replacement summons (in which case the person is liable to serve until the end of the week for which the person is summoned under the replacement summons); or
      1. the Registrar has served on the person a written notice under section 14C(1)(d) (in which case the person is no longer liable to serve as a juror as a result of the summons in respect of which the application under section 14B was made); or
      2. the Registrar has, under section 15, excused the person from jury service on a particular occasion; or
        1. the Registrar has, under section 15A, excused the person from jury service permanently (unless the person's permanent excusal is cancelled under section 15A(3) before the person is summoned for jury service); or
          1. a Judge has, under section 16, excused the person from jury service on a particular occasion; or
            1. a Judge has, under section 16AA, discharged the summons of the person.

              1. Despite subsections (3) and (3A), every juror who is sworn to try a case that continues beyond the end of the week for which the juror was summoned shall be bound to continue to serve until the determination of the case or until lawfully discharged by the court.

              Compare
              • 1908 No 90 ss 63–69, 95, 96, 100, 112–114
              • 1925 No 19 s 3
              • 1951 No 39 s 4(3)
              • 1960 No 115 s 3(1)
              • 1963 No 141 s 6(1)
              • 1976 No 48 ss 5, 6
              • 1977 No 32 s 9(3)(a)
              Notes
              • Section 13(1): replaced, on , by section 8 of the Juries Amendment Act 2000 (2000 No 2).
              • Section 13(1A): inserted, on , by section 16 of the Juries (Jury Service and Protection of Particulars of Jury List Information) Amendment Act 2012 (2012 No 75).
              • Section 13(3A): inserted, on , by section 11(2) of the Juries Amendment Act 2008 (2008 No 40).
              • Section 13(3A)(a)(i): amended, on , by section 80 of the Statutes Amendment Act 2025 (2025 No 74).
              • Section 13(3A)(b): amended, on , by section 7(1) of the Juries (Jury Service and Protection of Particulars of Jury List Information) Amendment Act 2012 (2012 No 75).
              • Section 13(3A)(ba): inserted, on , by section 7(2) of the Juries (Jury Service and Protection of Particulars of Jury List Information) Amendment Act 2012 (2012 No 75).
              • Section 13(3A)(c): amended, on , by section 7(1) of the Juries (Jury Service and Protection of Particulars of Jury List Information) Amendment Act 2012 (2012 No 75).
              • Section 13(4): amended, on , by section 11(3) of the Juries Amendment Act 2008 (2008 No 40).