Jury Duty
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Category: General Chat
Forum Name: General Chat
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URL: https://www.ohbaby.co.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=28070
Printed Date: 12 October 2025 at 9:22pm
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Topic: Jury Duty
Posted By: MamaT
Subject: Jury Duty
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 2:30pm
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Any advice for how to be excused? I just received a summons for Jury Duty for the week beginning 5th October, at which point I'll be about 28 weeks. -------------  
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Replies:
Posted By: sweetpea
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 2:32pm
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If you are still at work then get your employer to write a letter for you saying that you can't be replaced blah blah blah. Also add into it that you are preganant and that being on jury service might be stressfull to you and bubs. Its not really that hard to get off. ------------- http://daisypath.com"> 
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Posted By: kebakat
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 2:55pm
| I'd just write that you will be 28 weeks pregnant and sitting for long periods of time isn't easy for you because the seats in palmy court aren't really all that comfy and you don't want to interrupt court proceedings to go pee all the time and your brain is all mush.. or something like that. That's what I wrote to get exused lol |
Posted By: Mama2two
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 3:07pm
We once got my DH out of jury duty by writing a letter saying that he is very racist person(a complete fib btw) and felt it would be impossible for him to be impartial due to this. He got off and has never been asked again ------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
http://lilypie.com"> 
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Posted By: MamaT
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 3:33pm
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Thanks girls. Do you think I would need to get an accompanying letter from my MW if I go down the pregnancy route?
This is about my 5th call up and so far have always been able to get out of it due to uni study. -------------
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Posted By: kiwisj
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 3:37pm
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I;m sure your MW will be happy to write you a letter confirming you're pregnant and that sitting for long periods will be uncomfortable. ------------- SJ Callum - Dec 2008 Daniel - Oct 2010 |
Posted By: jaycee
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 3:47pm
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yep, my MW wrote me a letter when I got called up when i was about 30wks with Amy. -------------   
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Posted By: Bobbie
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 6:21pm
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Yep get a letter from your MW.
Every time I get called up I legitimately can't do it. Last time I was BFing the time before the company I worked for had just gone belly up and the time before that I was doing uni exams. Sucks because the second time was a high court murder trial and I was super keen to be on the jury for that. -------------  
 
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Posted By: kebakat
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 7:18pm
| I didn't send in a letter from my mw, they just accepted what I had said. But it can't hurt |
Posted By: KiwiL
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 7:26pm
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I understand people's reluctance to do Jury Duty (esp when preggers!), but it is a bit of a shame that all the well educated, working folk seem to always 'get off' having to do it. It kind of worries me who then IS left on the jury....
As an aside, my DH has never been called up, and I was last called about 10 years ago! |
Posted By: kebakat
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 7:40pm
| I've been called up 4 times, 3 times I've got out of it for something child related but the other time I sat on the jury, there is actually a wide mix of people who show up.. or at least did for mine |
Posted By: kiwisj
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 8:15pm
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I got called up almost as soon as I registered to vote - at the end of my first year of uni. There was a really interesting cross section of people doing it, and I enjoyed it (although I didn't enjoy the case I got picked for which was a sexual assault case). ------------- SJ Callum - Dec 2008 Daniel - Oct 2010 |
Posted By: DJ
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 8:34pm
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I was on a high court jury for attempted murder and it was soooo stressful - you really wouldn't want to put yourself thru that while preggers.
I was very impressed by the other jury members - mostly professionals etc. I think they accept pregnancy as a reason to get off jury service. ------------- http://lilypie.com">  http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: yummymummy
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 9:22pm
The people who aren't smart enough to get out of it 
In Australia, being pregnant is an automatic excuse from jury duty - all those hormones and mood swings are not welcome in court ------------- http://lilypie.com">  http://lilypie.com">
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kiwilaurie wrote:Posted By: HoneybunsMa
Date Posted: 13 August 2009 at 11:46pm
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I've been called up once about 8yrs ago and I got off because I had excema really bad! DR wrote a med cert (I can twist my Dr to write med certs for pretty much anything though lol)and wrote a letter saying that it would be a distraction myself and other jury members because I would be constantly scratching and it is uncomfortable lol ------------- http://www.myfitnesspal.com/weight-loss-ticker"> 
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Posted By: Andriea
Date Posted: 14 August 2009 at 7:52am
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I got called up last year and got off cause I needed to be there when I would be 39weeks so I was not keen, I just got it again, this time Ill be 33 weeks pregnant but Im gonna do it but generally if you write in saying your pregnant theyll excuse you. ------------- http://lilypie.com">  
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Posted By: MamaT
Date Posted: 14 August 2009 at 10:18am
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i would really enjoy doing jury service - I love criminology. One day I will definately do it. Just not when I'm pregnant.
Now, to word the excusal letter properly . . . -------------
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