Your responsibility as a juror is to decide the facts and apply the law impartially without favor or prejudice toward any person or group, regardless of income, sex, race, creed, or country of origin.

Jury service is the fulfillment of a high civil obligation and a valuable privilege. There is no more vital work you can perform in support of your fellow citizens in the exercise of self-government than by an honest fulfillment of jury service. Conscientious service brings its own reward in the personal satisfaction that an important task has been well done. The effectiveness of our system of justice is measured by the integrity and dedication of the jurors who serve in our courts.

The courts operate from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, except holidays. The reporting time for prospective jurors is usually 9:00 a.m. Depending upon the court's needs, you may be asked to report later during the day.

Tulare County has a one-tiered court system, the superior court. The system includes superior court judges and commissioners. The superior court has jurisdiction over all misdemeanor and felonies and criminal and civil cases.

JURY SUMMONS

If you have received a jury summons, click here for reporting instructions.

JURY POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

Click here for detailed information about jury policies and procedures, including employer information, deferrals, and exemptions.

JUROR INFORMATION

If you have been selected to serve as a trial juror, click here for juror information.

EMPLOYER INFORMATION

Click here for employer information regarding the rights and responsibilities of employers whose employees have been selected for jury service.

Every year in Tulare County, many public and private employees perform an essential community service: They provide jurors for the court's jury system. The jury system cannot exist without that support.

JURY DUTY
In Tulare County, the term of service is ONE SWORN TRIAL. Jurors are expected to report for service for one day of jury selection and to accept all trials, regardless of length, unless it would be a personal hardship. If an individual is a member or an alternate member of a jury panel, his or her term of service will end when the trial reaches a verdict or the deliberation stage is concluded. A form certifying the number of days a juror performed jury service will be furnished to the juror, upon the juror's request.

Most jurors are sent to courtrooms for voir dire (juror selection) in panels of 35 to 40, depending on the length of trial. This helps ensure efficient courtroom use of each juror.

LABOR CODE SECTION 230 STATES
(a) No employer shall discharge or in any manner discriminate against an employee for taking time off to serve as required by law on an inquest jury or trial jury, if such employee, prior to taking such time off, gives reasonable notice to the employer that he is required to serve.

(b) No employer shall discharge or in any manner discriminate against an employee for taking time off to appear in court as a witness as required by law, if such employee, prior to taking such time off, gives reasonable notice to the employer that he is required to appear in court.

(c) Any employee who is discharged, threatened with discharge, demoted, suspended, or in any other manner discriminated against in the terms and conditions of such employment by his employer because such employee has taken time off to serve on an inquest or trial jury or to appear in court as a witness shall be entitled to reinstatement and reimbursement for lost wages and work benefits caused by such acts of the employer. Any employer who willfully refused to rehire, promote, or otherwise restore an employee or former employee who has been determined to be eligible for such rehiring or promotion by a grievance procedure, arbitration, or hearing authorized by law, is guilty of a misdemeanor.

EMPLOYER PARTICIPATION IS VITAL TO THE JURY SYSTEM
We wish to extend our deepest appreciation to public and private employers in Tulare County for supporting the jury system. We cannot overemphasize how crucial that support is. Without employer participation, jury trials would come to a standstill. As a consequence, private and corporate residents would lose a fundamental principle on which we all depend: Justice!