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Jury service is an important public duty. The role of the jury, is to reach a verdict in the case, having heard and considered the facts according to the evidence and the instructions given by the judge. There are 15 people in a criminal jury trial and 12 in a civil jury trial.
Jurors are selected at random from the electoral register and can be cited for criminal trials (in the sheriff court or the High Court) or for civil cases in the Court of Session or the All Scotland Sheriff Personal Injury Court.
This page provides detailed information to support potential jurors. If you have been cited to attend as a juror please take time to read this page and continue to check back here from time to time for any updates.
If the citation you have received asks you to attend a remote jury centre you can find out more here.
Jurors continue to be selected at random from the electoral register. In order to preserve the random nature of citation, names are selected electronically from information supplied from the electoral registers.
This means an individual may be selected on multiple occasions or not at all for a lengthy period, or that several people from one employer are cited simultaneously.
It should be noted that, depending on circumstances, if you are excused from serving on a particular occasion, this may result in another citation being received within a relatively short timescale.
Step 1
Read your citation letter carefully, then respond to your citating using the link below.
You will need to have your contact phone number and date of birth to hand when responding. You can also respond to your citation by calling the court noted in your citation letter.
Some people can be excused from jury duty. Find out if you may be eligible for excusal. Check out the excusal from jury service page.
Step 2
After 17:00 on the evening before you're due to attend the court, you should phone the dedicated phone number on your citation. A recorded message will tell you what time you should arrive at the court the next day. If you can't phone, you should attend the court at the time indicated on your citation.
If you are selected, you will be contacted.
Step 3
Juries are selected through a process called a ballot. On the day of the ballot, you will be contacted by SCTS staff who will confirm that your name will be entered into the ballot.
The ballot will either take place on the day that you have been cited for, or a day after that day, and SCTS staff will contact you on the day that the ballot is taking place.
Step 4
Once the clerk has confirmed that you will need to attend court, read through our guides below on how to prepare yourself for the day.
These guides will provide you with helpful information including details on preparing for jury service, what to expect at court, the role of the judge and the jury, how the trial will proceed and a glossary of terms.
Dated 18 February 2022
Dated 28 February 2019
Dated 4 July 2019