The following definitions govern the construction of this chapter:
§ 194.Definitions
Title 3. Persons Specially Invested With Powers of a Judicial Nature · Chapter 1. Trial Jury Selection and Management Act · Last amended 2002 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 194 defines the working vocabulary of the Trial Jury Selection and Management Act, from “county” and “court” to “master list,” “qualified juror,” and “trial jury panel.”
Full Text of § 194
(a) “County” means any county or any coterminous city and county.
(b) “Court” means a superior court of this state, and includes, when the context requires, any judge of the court.
(c) “Deferred jurors” are those prospective jurors whose request to reschedule their service to a more convenient time is granted by the jury commissioner.
(d) “Excused jurors” are those prospective jurors who are excused from service by the jury commissioner for valid reasons based on statute, state or local court rules, and policies.
(e) “Juror pool” means the group of prospective qualified jurors appearing for assignment to trial jury panels.
(f) “Jury of inquest” is a body of persons summoned from the citizens before the sheriff, coroner, or other ministerial officers, to inquire of particular facts.
(g) “Master list” means a list of names randomly selected from the source lists.
(h) “Potential juror” means any person whose name appears on a source list.
(i) “Prospective juror” means a juror whose name appears on the master list.
(j) “Qualified juror” means a person who meets the statutory qualifications for jury service.
(k) “Qualified juror list” means a list of qualified jurors.
(l) “Random” means that which occurs by mere chance indicating an unplanned sequence of selection where each juror’s name has substantially equal probability of being selected.
(m) “Source list” means a list used as a source of potential jurors.
(n) “Summons list” means a list of prospective or qualified jurors who are summoned to appear or to be available for jury service.
(o) “Trial jurors” are those jurors sworn to try and determine by verdict a question of fact.
(p) “Trial jury” means a body of persons selected from the citizens of the area served by the court and sworn to try and determine by verdict a question of fact.
(q) “Trial jury panel” means a group of prospective jurors assigned to a courtroom for the purpose of voir dire.
Plain-English Summary
Section 194 is the glossary for the whole chapter. It defines “county” to include a coterminous city and county, and “court” to mean a superior court (including a judge of that court where context requires). It then walks through the jury-system vocabulary a reader needs to follow the rest of the Act: deferred and excused jurors, the juror pool, a jury of inquest, master lists and source lists, potential, prospective, and qualified jurors, and the qualified juror list itself.
The definitions carry practical weight because later sections lean on them without repeating them. “Random,” for instance, is defined here as selection by mere chance, with each juror’s name carrying a substantially equal probability of being picked — the standard that § 191’s policy and § 197’s source-list rules are built to satisfy. “Trial jury panel” likewise is the group assigned to a courtroom for voir dire, the term that § 219 and § 222 use when describing how panels move from the jury pool into a courtroom.
Official Comment
The following official comments are published by the California Law Revision Commission (and, for a few older sections, its predecessor Code Commissioners) alongside the statute itself — not commentary from this site.
1998 Law Revision Commission Comment. Subdivision (b) of Section 194 is amended to reflect the elimination of the justice court. Cal. Const. art. VI, §§ 1, 5(b).
2002 Law Revision Commission Comment. Subdivision (b) of Section 194 is amended to reflect unification of the municipal and superior courts pursuant to Article VI, Section 5(e), of the California Constitution.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does “random” mean under California jury law?
Section 194 defines it as selection by mere chance, following an unplanned sequence in which each juror’s name has a substantially equal probability of being selected.
What is the difference between a “master list” and a “qualified juror list”?
A master list is names randomly selected from the source lists; a qualified juror list is the list of jurors who have gone on to meet the statutory qualifications for service.
What is a “trial jury panel”?
It is a group of prospective jurors assigned to a courtroom for voir dire, as defined in § 194.
Does “court” include a single judge?
Yes. Section 194 defines “court” as a superior court of the state, and includes, when context requires, any judge of that court.
Amendment History
Added Stats 1988 ch 1245 § 2. Amended Stats 1998 ch 931 § 50 (SB 2139), effective September 28, 1998; Stats 2002 ch 784 § 39 (SB 1316).
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
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