Have jury duty? You'll soon be seeing a bigger paycheck

Ben Felder, Oklahoman
·2 min read
An increase in daily jury duty pay could put Oklahoma near the top across the nation.
An increase in daily jury duty pay could put Oklahoma near the top across the nation.

Oklahomans tapped for jury duty will soon be paid more for their service after the state Legislature more than doubled the current daily stipend.

Jurors are currently paid $20 a day for service in a county court, which is average among the 31 states that have fixed rates. Nine states pay $10 or less per day of service.

But Oklahoma lawmakers recently approved an increase to $50 a day, which would tie North Dakota for the highest in the nation, according to a 2022 study from the National Center for State Courts. The pay for service in a federal court is already $50 per day.

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Local courts also are able to reimburse jurors for mileage and up to $200 a day can be offered beginning on the 11th day of jury service through a lengthy trial fund.

Increasing the daily pay to jurors, some believe, will improve representation on a jury.

“Juror compensation is also a key driver of ensuring that inequities do not impact participation,” wrote Brendan Clark in the NCSC report. “Particularly for those already struggling with minimum wage positions, ensuring adequate compensation is crucial to their effective participation in the enterprise.”

A person making $7.25 an hour, Oklahoma's current minimum wage, would lose $58 if they missed an eight-hour shift due to jury duty.

State Sen. Carri Hicks said Oklahoma had not increased its pay for jurors in more than 20 years.
State Sen. Carri Hicks said Oklahoma had not increased its pay for jurors in more than 20 years.

“Serving as a juror is a civic duty we’re all called upon to do at some point, but it’s important that we ensure citizens are fairly compensated for their time,” said Sen. Carri Hicks, D-Oklahoma City, who authored a bill this year to increase juror pay. “Juror reimbursement hasn’t been increased in at least 20 years, while the cost of living has gone up exponentially.”

The Oklahoma County court clerk’s office issues around 1,800 jury summons each month to residents selected at random from the list of driver's licenses or other state identification documents.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma lawmakers increased the daily pay for jurors to $50