Jury duty in Maryland runs on a “one day or one trial” system: you either sit in the jury pool for a single day and go home, or you get picked for a trial and serve until it ends. The state pays $30 per day, rising to $50 per day once a trial passes five days.1Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Code Section 8-426 – Amount Your employer cannot fire you for going, cannot force you to burn vacation time, and cannot make you work a late shift on a day you serve. The steps below walk through what to do from the moment the summons shows up in your mailbox.
Who Gets Called
Names are pulled at random from Maryland voter rolls and Motor Vehicle Administration records. To actually serve, you have to meet every item on the state’s qualification list on the day you’re called:2Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Code 8-103
- At least 18 years old.
- A United States citizen.
- A resident of the county or Baltimore City where the summons was issued by the day you’re sworn in.
- Able to speak, read, write, and understand English well enough to follow testimony and complete the qualification form.
You’re disqualified if you’ve been convicted in a federal or state court of a crime punishable by more than a year in prison and you actually received a sentence over a year. A pending charge for that kind of crime also disqualifies you. A pardon restores your eligibility.2Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Code 8-103
Responding to the Summons
Your summons arrives with a Juror Qualification Form. Fill it out and return it, generally within 10 days. If your county offers it, you can submit through the Maryland Judiciary’s Juror e-Service portal; otherwise, complete the paper form, sign it, and mail it back.3Maryland Courts. Juror Qualification Form
Don’t ignore it. The penalty for failing to return the form runs up to $1,000, up to 30 days in jail, or both. Lying on it carries up to $5,000, up to 30 days in jail, or both.3Maryland Courts. Juror Qualification Form Failing to show up for the actual service date exposes you to up to $1,000, up to 60 days in jail, or both.4Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Code Section 8-504 – Failure to Appear for Jury Service
Call In the Night Before
Returning the form doesn’t mean you’ll end up at the courthouse. The evening before your reporting date, follow the call-in instructions on your summons — usually a recorded phone line or a court website that announces which juror numbers are needed the next morning. Many counties want you to call in each evening of your service week, because trials settle at the last minute all the time. Skipping this step is how people end up driving downtown for no reason.
Getting Excused or Exempted
Maryland splits “I’m out” into two categories: exemptions you can claim on your own, and excusals that require you to show hardship.
Automatic Exemptions
Two groups can opt out just by notifying the jury commissioner in writing. Anyone 70 or older can request an exemption. Active-duty members of the United States Armed Forces are exempt when federal law excuses them from state jury service.5Justia. Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Code 8-306 – Bases for Exemptions
Hardship Excusals
If you don’t qualify for an automatic exemption, you can still ask the jury judge or jury commissioner to excuse you on one of three grounds:6New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Code 8-402
- Extreme inconvenience or undue hardship, which can cover financial strain, medical issues documented by a healthcare provider, or other serious conflicts.
- Breastfeeding, for the necessary period.
- Legal custody of and personal responsibility for a child under 3 who needs your continuous care during court hours.
The court excuses you only for the period it considers necessary, and you can’t be excused more than twice unless the judge finds extraordinary circumstances. After the excusal period ends, you go back in the pool.6New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Code 8-402
If you have a disability and need accommodation, contact the jury commissioner’s office as soon as the summons arrives. Courts can arrange sign language interpreters, assistive listening devices, wheelchair access, and similar supports when they have advance notice.
At the Courthouse
When you report, you start in a jury assembly area. Groups of prospective jurors are then sent to individual courtrooms for voir dire, the selection process where the judge introduces the case and questions the group to screen for bias. You might be asked whether you know anyone involved, whether you have personal experience with the kind of case being tried, or whether anything would stop you from being fair. If your answers reveal a clear inability to be impartial, the judge removes you for cause. After that, attorneys on each side can use a limited number of peremptory challenges to excuse additional jurors without stating a reason.
Under the one-day-or-one-trial rule, if nobody picks you by the end of the day, your service is done. If you’re selected, you serve through the end of that trial. Most trials in Maryland circuit courts last two to three days, though some run longer.
While you’re serving, you can’t discuss the case with anyone outside the jury room, including family and friends. No posting about it on social media, and no doing your own research online.
Pay and Your Paycheck at Work
The state pays $30 for each day you’re required to attend or wait near the courthouse. Starting on day six of a single trial, that rises to $50 per day.1Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Code Section 8-426 – Amount Some counties add a local supplement. Payment typically arrives by check in the mail after service ends.
Your employer isn’t required to pay your regular wages while you’re out. Federal law under the Fair Labor Standards Act doesn’t require jury duty pay, and Maryland has no state law requiring it either. Some employers do pay voluntarily, so check your handbook or ask HR before your reporting day.
Protection From Your Employer
Even without a wage requirement, the law is firm on job protection. Your employer cannot fire you, threaten to fire you, or otherwise retaliate against you for missing work because of jury service.7Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Code 8-501 They also cannot require you to use vacation, sick, or annual leave to cover the time.8Maryland Courts. FAQs
There’s a shift-protection rule many jurors miss. If you spent four or more hours at jury service (travel time included), your employer cannot require you to work a shift that starts at or after 5:00 p.m. that same day, or before 3:00 a.m. the next morning. A violation of any of these protections exposes the employer to a fine of up to $1,000.7Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Code 8-501
Before you leave the courthouse, ask the jury office for a service certificate documenting the days you served. Hand it to your employer. That paper trail protects you if any question comes up later about missed work.9Maryland Courts. Employers and Jury Service Information
What to Wear and Bring
Courthouses are formal. Shorts and flip-flops can get you sent home and rescheduled. Business casual works: collared shirts, slacks, closed-toe shoes. No suit or tie required, but skip anything you’d wear to the beach.
Every courthouse has security screening. Leave pocket knives, tools, and anything that could pass as a weapon at home or in your car. You can usually bring your phone into the jury assembly room, but once you’re moved to a courtroom for voir dire or seated on a jury, expect to lose access to it. Many courthouses have lockers. Bring a book or something to read for the long stretches of waiting.
A Note on Grand Jury Service
If your summons is for grand jury service, the commitment looks nothing like the one described above. Grand jurors don’t decide guilt — they review evidence from a prosecutor and decide whether there’s probable cause to indict. A Maryland grand jury has 23 members plus alternates,10Maryland Courts. Serving on a Maryland Grand Jury and a typical term runs four to six months, with jurors reporting on set days rather than sitting continuously. Proceedings are secret, and grand jurors are prohibited from discussing the cases they review.