You’ve been summoned for jury duty, now what?
First, make sure you respond to your summons as quickly as you can. If you don't, a sheriff’s deputy will contact you to make sure you fill out the summons form. A deputy will never ask or demand payment from you related to jury duty – that is a scam!
Next, make sure you know where you’re going! There are four courts in Missoula that you could report to for jury duty:
Federal court cases often include federal agencies and interstate charges but can vary. The Russell Smith Federal Courthouse is located at 201 E. Broadway.
Annual Notice Postcards
Each summer, the three local courts send annual notice postcards to potential jurors. Municipal court postcards are yellow, Justice Court postcards are green and District Court postcards are pink. If you receive one of these postcards, it means that you are in a pool of potential jurors for the upcoming year.
These postcards are not a summons to report for a specific date. When you are needed to serve on a specific trial, you will be notified by letter with a jury summons by mail.
Eligibility
In order to be eligible to serve as a trial juror, you must be:
- 18 years of age or older,
- A resident for at least 30 days of the state and of the city, town or county in which you are called for jury service
- A citizen of the United States.
Effective Oct. 1, 2007 jurors are randomly selected from a combined list of registered voters, licensed drivers and holders of Montana ID cards. Even if you are not registered to vote, you may still be called for jury duty.