Jury Service FAQ's

1. What happens if I do not report for jury duty?
2. Will I receive my salary from my employer for time spent on jury duty?
3. What do I give my employer to document the time I spent on jury duty?
4. Can I be fired from my job for serving on jury duty?
5. How are jurors picked from the general population?
6. What do I do if Miami-Dade County is threatened by a tropical storm or hurricane?

1. What happens if I do not report for jury duty?

Jurors not reporting for duty may be held in contempt of Court and/or fined up to $100.

2. Will I receive my salary from my employer for time spent on jury duty?

Sections 11-31, et seq., of the Code of Metropolitan Miami-Dade County provides that employers are to pay employees for jury service if:

• The employee is regularly scheduled for work at least 35 hours a week;
  
• The employer has at least 10 full-time employees;
  
• The employee serves as a juror in Miami-Dade County;
  
• The employer has offices or does business in Miami-Dade County;  and,
  
• The employee gives the employer copies of the summons and notice of jury service at least five working days prior to absence from  work.
  
• Payment under this ordinance does not include commissions.
  
• If a juror receives payment for jury service from the State, the employer may deduct this amount from the employee's pay.

3.  What do I give my employer to document the time I spent on jury duty?

An attendance certificate, which specifies the dates of jury service, may be obtained from the Jury Pool staff at the end of a juror's service.

4. Can I be fired from my job for serving on jury duty?

No. Florida law prohibits any employer from firing an employee who is serving on jury duty.

5. How are jurors picked from the general population?

Approximately 300,000 citizens in Miami-Dade County are randomly selected by a computer each year to be summoned to jury duty for the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida. Summonses are mailed to citizens who possess  a valid driver's license or identification card issued by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.

6. What do I do if Miami-Dade County is threatened by a tropical storm or hurricane?

All jurors can call the telephone (call in) number on the summons for updated reporting instructions in the event of inclement weather.  Jurors summoned to the Dade County Courthouse should call (305) 349-7222 and jurors summoned to the Richard E. Gerstein Justice Building, should call (305) 548-5575. The recorded instructions will be updated as needed as weather conditions change.