Excuses
How to postpone jury duty
Pick the court and your reason: the tool writes a postponement request with the date you can serve, to copy into the juror portal or a letter.
Write a postponement or excusal request
Your request, ready to copy
To the Jury Office, New York court named on my summons Juror number: [number printed on the summons] I ask to postpone my jury service because I have a commitment on the reporting date that I cannot move. I am available from January 11, 2027 and will serve on any date the court gives me after that. I can provide a letter from my employer or my booking. I understand that the court decides on this request and that I must report as summoned until I receive its answer. Name, address, phone: Date and signature:
One postponement to a definite date when court is in session, no more than 6 months after the original date; a breastfeeding mother may postpone up to 2 years. Ask the county commissioner of jurors. Use the portal or address printed on your summons.
Postponing, also called deferring, moves your jury service to a later date without excusing you, and it is the request courts grant most easily. Most courts take it online through the juror portal on the summons, often without any proof for a first request, as long as you ask before the reporting date and choose a date within the window the court allows. Limits are set state by state. New York, for example, allows one postponement as of right to a date within six months under its Judiciary Law, and longer for a breastfeeding mother. Federal courts handle deferrals through each district's eJuror system and let you pick an alternate time if the deferral is granted. A postponement does not reset the clock on future summonses in the way service does: once you serve, 45 jurisdictions protect you from another summons for a set period, from 12 to 72 months. Each state page gives the deferral rule we read, with its source, on October 29, 2026.
When can you be summoned again?
New York: not again before
September 29, 2032
| Rule | 72 months |
| Term: Trial jurors serve no more than five court days of actual attendance (or less if the commissioner sets it), but stay until any trial they are on ends. | |
Not eligible to serve again in state courts for 6 years after the last day of service (8 years if service lasted more than 10 days).
Statutes and court pages read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
Postponement rules state by state
The table gives the deferral rule we read for each jurisdiction, in our words, with the state page holding the link to the statute or court page. Where a state leaves postponement to each court, the row says so: the county jury office then sets its own limits.
| State | What the law or court says |
|---|---|
| Alaska | Service can be deferred for hardship, temporary transportation problems or election work, to an agreed date no more than 10 months after the original date. |
| Alabama | One automatic postponement on request (in person, phone, email or writing) to a fixed date within 6 months; a second only for an extreme emergency. |
| Arkansas | A 'deferment of term' lets you move your service to another term; it does not excuse you. Practice varies by county (Mississippi County allows no postponement). |
| Arizona | Two postponements on request (in person, phone, email or writing) to a date set by the jury commissioner; more only for an unforeseen extreme emergency. |
| California | Follow the summons instructions (online or in writing) and give the earliest date you can serve; courts should grant a one-time deferral without requiring a court visit. |
| Colorado | One postponement as of right: via the summons form (mail/email), the county's online postponement request, or the jury commissioner; generally to a date within 6 months (out-of-state students up to 12 months). |
| Connecticut | Postpone online (Defer Your Jury Service page) to a date within 10 months of the original date; a second deferral or one within 2 weeks of the date requires calling Jury Administration (1-800-842-8175). |
| District of Columbia | One postponement for any reason, via eJuror, email (jurorhelp@dcsc.gov), phone (202) 879-4604 or live chat. |
| Delaware | Ask through the online qualification questionnaire or use 'Request Schedule Change' in the juror portal (one-time date change, not within 5 days of service; otherwise contact Jury Services). Out-of-state residents temporarily away for work or study are deferred until return. |
| Florida | Service may be postponed up to 6 months on written or oral request to the clerk (up to 12 months during a declared emergency); you may propose a date. |
| Georgia | Handled by the county clerk of superior court; e.g. Fayette County grants a one-time deferral via the notarized affidavit on the back of the summons, with documentation. |
| Hawaii | Write to or call the court explaining the conflict (written request required in the 2nd, 3rd and 5th circuits); only one deferral per summons. |
| Iowa | Postpone up to 12 months online or by phone at least 10 days before the reporting date; the first request is granted automatically. |
| Idaho | Follow the instructions on the summons, which vary by court; contact the court's jury commissioner. |
| Illinois | Cook County: call (312) 603-JURY; the date can be pushed back 11 or 22 weeks (e.g. vacation, student or teacher during school, seasonal work). |
| Indiana | One deferral as of right for hardship, extreme inconvenience or necessity: contact the jury administrator by phone, email, letter or in person and pick a new date within one year. |
| Kansas | Call the county jury clerk before the summons date; Sedgwick County allows one rescheduling for temporary extraordinary or compelling hardship. |
| Kentucky | Ask the Chief Circuit Judge or a designated clerk/administrator; staff can postpone up to 12 months, a judge up to 24 months. |
| Louisiana | Contact the parish clerk of court before your date; one postponement, to a date within six months (21st Judicial District practice; parishes set their own procedure). |
| Massachusetts | One postponement as of right, for up to one year, chosen on the summons response; further deferrals only for hardship, inconvenience or public necessity. |
| Maryland | One-time change of report date online in participating counties, otherwise contact the local jury office with a pressing reason. |
| Maine | Contact the court clerk before your date to ask to postpone; the court must approve and may reschedule to a less burdensome season. |
| Michigan | Handled by each court's jury clerk; contact the clerk as soon as possible (example: the 15th District Court grants only one postponement). Students' service is postponed to the end of the school or academic year. |
| Minnesota | Ask the jury commissioner; deferral is for a reasonable time set by the county jury plan and is preferred to an excuse. |
| Missouri | One postponement as of right: ask the board of jury commissioners in person, by phone, email or in writing; the new date is within 6 months (12 for full-time students). A second postponement only for an unforeseeable extreme emergency. |
| Mississippi | One postponement as of right (if none in the past 2 years): contact the circuit clerk in person, by phone, email or in writing and fix a new date within 6 months or two court terms. A second postponement only for an unforeseeable extreme emergency. |
| Montana | Ask the Clerk of District Court to be made unavailable for set dates (e.g. vacation, doctor appointment) before being drawn for a specific trial. |
| North Carolina | Requests to be excused or deferred go to the chief district court judge (or the clerk or staff designated) under procedures set in each district; jurors 72+, full-time students and people with a disability may file a signed statement without appearing, at least 5 business days before the report date. Deferred jurors are added to a later session. |
| North Dakota | The court may excuse a juror for a period it deems necessary, after which the juror must report again (a postponement). |
| Nebraska | Written request to the judge (form DC 8:4, Application for Postponement of Jury Service) showing undue hardship, extreme inconvenience or public necessity; granted for a limited period. |
| New Hampshire | Ask through the eResponse questionnaire to defer to another month (e.g. out-of-state student, legislator in session, pending case, temporary medical condition, hardship); a judge rules on it. |
| New Jersey | After completing the qualification questionnaire, a juror may defer (reschedule) once through the My Jury Service Portal or by contacting the county Jury Management Office, choosing a new date and a reason (medical, transportation, travel, student, emergency, employment). |
| New Mexico | One postponement can be requested through the online Jury Questionnaire; a second is allowed only for an unforeseen extreme emergency. You must appear unless told it was granted. |
| Nevada | Clark County: request a deferral through the online jury questionnaire, then email supporting documents to jury@clarkcountycourts.us. |
| New York | One postponement to a definite date when court is in session, no more than 6 months after the original date; a breastfeeding mother may postpone up to 2 years. Ask the county commissioner of jurors. |
| Ohio | One postponement is granted automatically if asked at least two business days before the first appearance (phone, writing or email) and a new date within six months is agreed; further postponements only for extreme emergencies. Small employers (25 or fewer staff) get an automatic postponement if another employee served in the prior 30 days. |
| Oklahoma | One postponement as of right: ask the court clerk in person, by phone, email or in writing and fix a new date within six months. A second only for an extreme emergency. Automatic postponement if a co-worker at an employer with 5 or fewer full-time staff was summoned for the same period. |
| Oregon | Request a postponement in the county's online eResponse portal after completing the qualification form. One deferral for good cause, to a term starting within a year; more only for good cause with 10 available dates in the next six months. |
| Pennsylvania | Postponements are handled by each county's court administrator. Example: Lehigh County allows one deferment chosen in the online questionnaire. |
| Rhode Island | After receiving a summons, log in to Jury Service eResponse and choose 'Apply to defer'; pick a new date on the calendar; the Jury Commissioner approves or denies. |
| South Carolina | Students and school employees get their service moved outside the school term on request (with proof). Essential workers may be transferred to another term by affidavit. Responses and waiver requests go through the clerk of court or the Juror Web Portal. |
| South Dakota | Enter unavailable dates in the online questionnaire or tell the local clerk of courts; written proof may be requested. Students contact the clerk. |
| Tennessee | Handled by the county jury coordinator or clerk. Knox: ask at orientation or contact the Jury Coordinator. Hamilton: request at least 10 days ahead and pick a new 2- or 3-week term. |
| Texas | Ask the court clerk in person, in writing or by phone before your date. A first postponement is granted automatically (if none in the past year) to a date within 6 months; later ones need an extreme emergency. |
| Utah | The court may postpone service if you show good cause; contact the court using the number on your notice. |
| Virginia | Call the number on the summons; the judge may defer service for genuine hardship, or defer it to the next term for an occupational inconvenience (incl. full-time students and parents of children 16 or younger). |
| Vermont | On an individual request showing undue hardship, the judge may excuse you for part of the two-year term, which works as a postponement. The court's own procedure (online questionnaire, Jury Administration) could not be read. |
| Washington | Call or write to the number/address on the summons to reschedule; an excused juror may be reassigned to another term within 12 months. |
| Wisconsin | Ask the court (or the clerk of circuit court, if authorized) named on the summons; it may move your service to a later date it sets. Documentation may be required. |
| West Virginia | Write to the presiding circuit judge; the court may excuse you for a set period, after which you must report again as directed. |
| Wyoming | No statewide postponement rule found in the statute; courts handle it. Example: Teton County lets jurors ask in advance to be excused from trial dates in certain periods (full-time students away at school until a break). |
When to ask
As soon as the summons arrives. Portals usually close requests a few days before the reporting date, and a request on the day itself is often refused. Have a date in mind: courts like a specific week rather than "later", and some only offer a list. Choose a period you can actually keep, since a second postponement is harder to obtain.
Reasons that work for a postponement
Almost any honest scheduling conflict: exams, a surgery or medical treatment, a trip booked before the summons, a seasonal peak at work, a family event, childcare that you can arrange for later. Unlike an excuse, a postponement rarely needs to meet a legal test, because you still serve. That makes it the right request whenever the problem is the date rather than service itself.
After you postpone
You receive a new date on the portal or by mail. Tell your employer again, since the new date restarts their planning. When you have served, note the date: the mini-tool above shows when the same court system may summon you again under your state's rule. If you receive a call claiming you missed your new date and must pay, it is a scam; courts write to jurors and never take payment by phone, as the federal courts warn.