(a) No eligible person shall be exempt from service as a trial juror by reason of occupation, economic status, or any characteristic listed or defined in Section 11135 of the Government Code, or for any other reason. No person shall be excused from service as a trial juror except as specified in subdivision (b).
§ 204.Exemption from service
Title 3. Persons Specially Invested With Powers of a Judicial Nature · Chapter 1. Trial Jury Selection and Management Act · Last amended 2007 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 204 forbids exempting an eligible person from jury service based on occupation, economic status, or a protected characteristic, and allows an excuse from service only for undue hardship on the person or the public as the Judicial Council defines it.
Full Text of § 204
(b) An eligible person may be excused from jury service only for undue hardship, upon themselves or upon the public, as defined by the Judicial Council.
Plain-English Summary
Section 204 closes off the old practice of automatically exempting whole categories of workers, such as doctors, teachers, or business owners, from jury service. No eligible person can be exempted by reason of occupation, economic status, or any characteristic listed or defined in Government Code § 11135, or for any other reason.
What remains is a narrower, individualized escape valve: an eligible person may be excused from jury service, but only for undue hardship, whether on the person or on the public, as the Judicial Council defines that term. That framework replaced the old occupational-exemption system and shifted the question from “what category of person is this?” to “would serving create an undue hardship in this particular case?”
Frequently Asked Questions
Are doctors, lawyers, or business owners automatically exempt from California jury duty?
No. Section 204 bars exemptions based on occupation, economic status, or any Government Code § 11135 characteristic.
How can an eligible person get out of jury service in California?
Only by showing undue hardship, on the person or on the public, under the standard the Judicial Council has defined.
Who decides what counts as undue hardship?
The Judicial Council defines the undue hardship standard that jury commissioners and courts apply under Section 204.
Amendment History
Added Stats 1988 ch 1245 § 2. Amended Stats 2000 ch 43 § 2 (AB 2418); Stats 2007 ch 568 § 15 (AB 14).
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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