What to do if you’ve received a jury summons
Read the details on the summons you have received, it will tell you how to determine whether you need to report to the courthouse on the date printed on the summons, how to ask for a postponement of your service, and what to do if you believe you received the summons by mistake.
Please read the details on the summons that you have received. If you still have questions about whether you need to report to your county courthouse for jury duty, or requesting a postponement of your service, or what to do if you believe you have received the summons by mistake, please find the Jury Frequently Asked Questions.
Important things to do before jury duty
- Childcare: If you’re among those who are required to report to the courthouse, make arrangements beforehand for childcare (you can’t bring kids with you)
- Time Off Work: Request to have time off from work (court staff can help you get a certificate of service to show your employer), and other matters.
- Items to Bring: Bring a book or something else to occupy your time as you wait with others who also received a summons.
- Security: To enter most courthouses in Colorado, you’ll need to go through security screening similar to what you’d experience at an airport, so plan for that as well.
Once inside, you’ll be directed to a jury assembly room. Staff in the courthouse will be available to answer questions. A video will be played for you to teach you about what happens during a trial. A judge may come to speak to you and other jurors about jury service and our appreciation for your service, even if you’re not selected as a juror. Court staff will call out numbers like the one that’s printed on your summons. If your number is called, you and others in your group will be brought to a courtroom for jury selection. The judge and attorneys will ask you and the others questions, even though you may already have answered a number of questions in writing. The point is to ensure you are qualified to serve and that you can do so in a fair and impartial manner. The attorneys and their clients then will have the opportunity to dismiss prospective jurors as they work toward seating the jury.
About Jury Duty
Jury History and Reform
Since 1990, Colorado law has aimed to make jury service more convenient by limiting how often a person must serve in a calendar year. Individuals who are summoned and selected to serve on a jury are required to serve only for the duration of that trial.
The Judicial Branch continues to improve the jury system by implementing changes designed to ensure that jurors are treated with respect and courtesy, enhance the quality of the decision-making process, and increase the overall efficiency of the system. Some of these significant reforms include:
- Respecting the use of the juror’s time by conducting court proceedings timely and minimizing unnecessary delays;
- Respecting the personal privacy of jurors by limiting public access to individual juror information and sealing juror questionnaire forms;
- Expanding the composition of the jury pool by using additional sources of juror names;
- Permitting juror questions, note-taking/trial notebooks, and pre-deliberation discussions in many cases;
- Communicating with the jurors in plain English; and
- Revising the summons form sent to jurors for clarity and readability.
Colorado Judicial Branch