Jury Selection Process
The purpose of the jury selection process is for Crown counsel and defense counsel to decide who they want to sit on the jury.
At this point you have received a jury summons to attend a jury selection. Once you have been selected to be on a jury panel, you must attend a jury selection process and it is your legal obligation to attend.
This section will help you to understand the role you will play. There is a set of rules that apply to the jury selection and the sheriff and judge will explain what you need to do as you go through the process. A jury selection will be either for a criminal or civil trial and the jury summons will tell you which one you are attending. A criminal trial involves matters such as of theft, mischief, assault, murder, manslaughter, aggravated assault, bank robbery and drug cases. This website focuses on jury information for criminal trials. For information about the civil jury process, please visit the Jury Duty - Ministry of Justice website.
During the Jury Selection
The sheriff plays a key role in organizing the jury selection process. When a trial is to be held, they are responsible for delivering the jury summons in person or by mail, not less than 15 days before jury selection is to take place. To learn more about a jury summons, please visit the Responding to a Summons section on this website.
A separate jury selections process takes place for each jury trial and several juries may be selected in one day. On the day of jury selection, anyone not selected to sit on the jury is dismissed. Be prepared to participate in the selection process for at least half a day. But you may be required to stay for the entire day. You may also be asked to come back the following month for a second jury selection. If this happens, the judge will let you know before you leave the courtroom.
Alternate Jurors
If there is time, because a criminal trial may not take place the same day as the jury selection process, the judge may decide to pick alternate jurors. An alternate juror takes the place of any existing jurors who are unable to serve. The alternate juror must attend the first day of the trial. If an existing juror is unable to serve, the alternate juror will take their place for jury duty.
