Office Of The Jury Clerk                                                    Read the current issue of Jury Matters
Justice Center Tower
185 Central Avenue, SW
Suite T-7100
Atlanta, GA 30303
404-612-4600

Jury Duty – Your Right, Your Responsibility, Your Opportunity to Serve

Jury service represents a vital part of America’s system of a free democracy. Despite hectic professional and personal lives, jury service should be welcomes as both a right and a responsibility, not a burden. “A jury of one’s peers” is a protection guaranteed by the United States Constitution.

The One Trial/One Day System

The Superior Court of Fulton County operates a one trial/one day system for jurors. This means that if you are NOT selected to serve on a jury panel for a trial, your period of service is complete after the end of the first day. If you ARE selected to serve on a jury for a trial, your service is complete at the conclusion of the trial. The average trial lasts for three days.

Grand Jurors

The Jury Services Division summons potential grand jurors from the master jury list. The Grand Jury meets on Tuesday and Friday for a two month term.

Grand jurors decide whether to issue a formal written accusation of a crime (called an indictment) by listening to the evidence presented by the District Attorney.

What You Can Expect on Your Service Date

To accommodate prospective jurors, if an “X” is placed in the standby box, you may call the night before to see if you are required to report. If you are required to report check in at the Jury Assembly Room located on the 7^th floor of the Fulton Judicial Tower at 185 Central Ave. The jury assembly room is the waiting area for prospective jurors.

You will view an orientation video for jury service and will be informed of courtroom status, lunch breaks, restaurant locations, and snack and drink vending machines.

If your name is called as a prospective member of a jury panel, you will be escorted from the jury assembly room to a courtroom by court staff. Once seated in the courtroom, you will be asked to take an oath to truthfully answer all questions regarding your qualifications to serve as a juror. This process is called “voir dire” which in French means “to speak the truth.”

Prospective jurors not selected for trial are dismissed at the end of the day and their service is complete.

Sometimes prospective jurors are asked to wait in the jury assembly room, the courthouse hallways or in jury deliberation rooms, and while the wait time may seem never ending, the time that is spent waiting is often caused by pre-trial matters that the court must resolve before jury selection can begin or the trial can proceed. Sometimes a case is resolved during pre-trial proceedings. Knowing that jurors have been assembled and are ready to begin trial often prompts parties to settle.

Click here for more information about Jury Service and Frequently Asked Questions