Jury Duty in Wyoming: Pay, Exemptions, Excuses and What to Expect (2026)

Wyoming courts · Last reviewed November 4, 2026

Wyoming draws its jurors from voter lists, with names from driver's license and state ID records added in. If you're an adult U.S. citizen who has lived in Wyoming and in your county for 90 days and you know enough English, you can be summoned to serve in district court or circuit court.

The headline numbers: jurors get $30 for each full or part day they attend, and after more than 5 days in a row the judge may add $20 a day. Your employer doesn't have to pay you, but it can't fire, threaten, intimidate or coerce you over jury service. A juror who willfully skips a summons can be arrested, brought to court, and held in contempt.

The rules are in Title 1, Chapter 11 of the Wyoming Statutes (W.S. 1-11-101 to 1-11-401), with grand juries in Title 7, Chapter 5. Each county's district court runs its own jury pool through the state's eJuror system. Everything below is current as of November 2026.

Wyoming jury duty at a glance

Question	Answer	Source
Who can serve	Adult U.S. citizen; resident of Wyoming and the county for 90 days; able to serve; enough English	W.S. 1-11-101
Disqualified	Anyone convicted of a felony, unless the conviction is reversed or annulled, pardoned, or rights are restored	W.S. 1-11-102
Exemptions and excuses	Exempt on a sworn claim: paid firefighters, police, elected officials, active National Guard and some military. Excused: age 72 on request, young children, health, family illness or death, property threats	W.S. 1-11-103 to 1-11-105
Postponing	No statute; ask through eJuror or the court that summoned you	Wyoming Judicial Branch
How often you can be called	After serving, excused on request for the rest of the jury term and for the rest of the calendar year	W.S. 1-11-104, 1-11-122
How long service lasts	A jury term set by each court, often six months or a year; you appear only when called for a trial	Teton County, Platte County
Pay	$30 for each full or part day; the court may add $20 a day after more than 5 consecutive days	W.S. 1-11-303
Mileage and expenses	State mileage rate when you travel more than five miles one way	W.S. 1-11-302
Does your employer have to pay you?	No	W.S. 1-11-401
Job protection	No firing, threats, intimidation or coercion; reinstatement, up to $1,000 per violation, and attorney's fees; sue within six months	W.S. 1-11-401
Penalty for not showing up	Arrest, compelled attendance and contempt of court	W.S. 1-11-115
Official juror site	Wyoming Judicial Branch: Jury Duty (eJuror)	court

All Title 1 sections are in the Legislature's official Title 1 file; search it for the section number.

Who can serve

W.S. 1-11-101 sets the qualifications:

(a) A person is qualified to act as a juror if he is: (i) An adult citizen of the United States who has been a resident of the state and of the county ninety (90) days before being selected and returned pursuant to W.S. 1-11-106; (ii) In possession of his natural faculties, of ordinary intelligence and without mental or physical infirmity preventing satisfactory jury service; (iii) Possessed of sufficient knowledge of the English language.

The same section bars excluding anyone "on account of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin or economic status," and tells the court to discharge a person who doesn't qualify. The Wyoming Judicial Branch says you must be 18 or older (Wyoming Judicial Branch).

Who is disqualified. A felony conviction disqualifies you unless the conviction is reversed or annulled, you're pardoned, or your rights are restored under W.S. 7-13-105 (W.S. 1-11-102).

Where names come from. The Wyoming Supreme Court compiles a base jury list for each county from voter lists, and it may add names from Wyoming driver's license and state ID lists (W.S. 1-11-129). That's why you can be summoned even if you're not registered to vote. The clerk then picks prospective jurors at random (W.S. 1-11-109). The state partners with Vital Statistics twice a year to remove people who have died; if a summons arrives for a family member who has passed away, tell the court online or in writing (Wyoming Judicial Branch).

Exemptions and excuses

Wyoming separates exemptions, which you claim by right, from excuses, which the judge grants, and its excuse rule is strict.

Exemptions. Under W.S. 1-11-103, you're exempt if you are:

a salaried, active member of an organized fire department;
an active member of a city, town, county or state police department or law enforcement agency;
an elected public official;
an active duty member of the Wyoming National Guard; or
exempt under federal law, including active duty military when jury service would unreasonably interfere with military duties or unit readiness.

You must claim it, under oath. An exemption isn't automatic. W.S. 1-11-105 lets an exempt person "submit a declaration under penalty of perjury" stating the grounds. If the court accepts it, you're discharged for that jury term and needn't appear. If you don't file one, you've waived the exemption and must serve unless the court excuses you (W.S. 1-11-105).

Excuses. W.S. 1-11-104 sets a high bar:

(a) A juror may not be excused for a trivial cause or for hardship or inconvenience to his business, but only when material injury or destruction to his property or property entrusted to him is threatened, or when his health or the sickness or death of a member of his family requires his absence. A person who has attained the age of seventy-two (72) years may be excused at his request. A person may be excused from jury duty when the care of that person's young children requires his absence.

What that means in practice:

Age 72. There's no upper age limit, but once you've reached 72 you may be excused just by asking. The Judicial Branch's FAQ and Teton County's page describe it as over 72, but the statute says "attained the age of seventy-two."
Parents. You may be excused when caring for your young children requires you to be away from court.
Health and family. Your own health, or a family member's sickness or death, can justify an excuse. For a medical excuse, eJuror requires a physician's note, and the note shouldn't include confidential medical details (eJuror brochure). Teton County asks for a note on the doctor's prescription pad or letterhead saying only that you can't serve.
Your property. A threat of material injury to or destruction of your property, or property in your care, counts.
Not your business. Hardship or inconvenience to your business is expressly not enough.
Breastfeeding and students. The statute has no specific excuse for either. Teton County lets full-time students attending school outside the county ask to be excused until they're home on break.

How to ask. Request an excusal or exemption on your Juror Homepage in eJuror after completing the questionnaire, or send a written request to the court that summoned you. The Judicial Branch warns that "not all excusals are guaranteed," and each court decides case by case (Wyoming Judicial Branch). Some courts want a sworn request: Teton County requires excusal requests in writing under penalty of perjury, decided by the presiding judge, and counts you excused only once you get written confirmation (Teton County).

Postponing jury duty

Wyoming's statutes don't provide a formal deferral. In practice, the court can work around your schedule. eJuror lets you "request an excuse or deferral, and select an alternate time to serve," and you can list the dates you can't serve when you fill out the questionnaire (Wyoming Judicial Branch; eJuror brochure). For doctor's appointments or travel, the Judicial Branch says to request an excusal online or send your plans in writing to the court.

Ask early. Platte County says it will try to accommodate planned vacations, appointments, surgeries and business trips if you tell the office as soon as you make plans and before you get a letter calling you to a specific trial (Platte County). After a temporary excusal request, you're responsible for checking the court's decision.

Juror pay

W.S. 1-11-303 sets the fee:

Jurors shall receive thirty dollars ($30.00) for each full or part day of actual attendance. A juror in attendance for more than five (5) consecutive days, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, may, in the discretion of the court, be allowed an additional twenty dollars ($20.00) per day for each day actually in attendance.

What that means:

$30 a day, statewide. A part day pays the full $30. Jurors in circuit court get the same fees and mileage as district court jurors (W.S. 1-11-119).
Long trials. After more than five consecutive court days, not counting weekends and holidays, the judge may add $20 a day, for $50 in all. The extra is discretionary, not automatic.
Mileage. If you travel more than five miles one way, you get mileage at the rate set for state travel (W.S. 1-11-302). That rate is set by the governor and can't exceed the IRS's maximum nontaxable mileage rate (W.S. 9-3-103). The eJuror questionnaire asks for your round-trip mileage, and the court verifies it.
Getting paid. The clerk notes when each juror is discharged and issues a certificate under the court's seal for the fees and mileage owed (W.S. 1-11-304). Platte County pays after the trial ends.

Your job is protected

W.S. 1-11-401 protects jurors at work:

(a) No employer shall discharge, threaten to discharge, intimidate or coerce any employee by reason of the employee's jury service, for the attendance or scheduled attendance in connection with jury service, in any court in the state of Wyoming.

Four things follow:

Scheduled attendance counts. The protection covers being scheduled to serve as well as actually attending.
No pay is required. The statute bars retaliation but doesn't require your employer to pay wages for jury days.
Real remedies. An employer that violates the law can be ordered to stop and to reinstate you, is liable for exemplary damages "not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) for each violation as to each employee," and must pay your reasonable costs and attorney's fees. If you're reinstated, your jury service counts as a furlough or leave of absence, with no loss of seniority and with the benefits the employer gives workers on leave.
Six months to sue. An employee can't sue "more than six (6) months after the alleged violation." A court can make an employee who brings a frivolous or bad-faith suit pay the employer's attorney's fees.

(W.S. 1-11-401)

What happens if you don't show up

W.S. 1-11-115 is short:

Any juror summoned who willfully and without reasonable excuse fails to attend may be arrested and compelled to attend and is subject to contempt of court.

The statute sets no fixed fine; the judge decides the contempt sanction. A juror called in to complete a short panel who neglects or refuses to serve "may be fined in the same manner" as any other summoned juror (W.S. 1-11-125). Every juror summoned must appear on the day and hour the court sets and leave only with the court's permission (W.S. 1-11-112). Teton County's district court says you must appear unless the presiding judge excuses you, and you count as excused only once you have written confirmation. If you can't come, contact the court before your date.

Your first day

Each county runs its own jury pool, so follow your summons. The Wyoming Judicial Branch and county pages describe the usual pattern:

Answer the questionnaire. Your summons comes by mail. You must complete the Juror Qualification Questionnaire, either on paper or online, but not both. Online, log in to eJuror with the 9-digit juror number printed above your name on the summons. Teton County asks for the questionnaire within 10 days.
Sign up for alerts. eJuror can send email or text notices when you must report or when an excusal is granted. Text messages aren't available everywhere.
Wait to be called. You're in the pool for a term, often six months (Teton County) or a year (Platte County), and you're called only for specific trials. Notice usually comes a week or more ahead: Teton County aims for at least 10 days and typically gives 2 to 3 weeks; Platte County mails notice about two weeks before.
Trial length. District court trials often run 2 to 5 days, though some go longer. Circuit court juries have six members; district court civil juries have six unless a party demands 12 (W.S. 1-11-119).
Accessibility. Platte County offers hearing assistance devices during trials. Ask your clerk about any accommodation you need.
Keep your details current. Tell the clerk of district court if you change your name, address, phone or employer.

(Wyoming Judicial Branch; Teton County; Platte County)

Grand jury service

Wyoming summons a grand jury only when a district judge orders one (W.S. 7-5-101). Grand jurors are chosen the same way as civil trial jurors and serve for one year unless the judge discharges them sooner (W.S. 7-5-102). A grand jury has 12 members with the same qualifications as trial jurors, and at least nine must agree to return an indictment (W.S. 7-5-103, 7-5-104).

Jury duty scams

We found no jury-scam notice on the Wyoming Judicial Branch's site, but the federal courts describe the common scheme: calls, emails and texts that threaten fines or jail for missing jury duty and pressure you to hand over personal data. The federal courts' advice:

Federal courts do not require anyone to provide any sensitive information in a telephone call or email.

(U.S. Courts juror scam warning)

Wyoming's own process works the same way. Summonses arrive by mail, and eJuror needs only the juror number on your summons to log in. A contempt sanction comes from a judge after a court process, not from a caller demanding payment. If you get such a call, hang up and phone the clerk of court at the number on the court's website.

Recent and pending changes

None found. No 2024, 2025 or 2026 law changing jury qualifications, exemptions, excuses, pay or job protection was found as of November 2026. The most recent rewrites of the jury chapter came in 2019 (Enrolled Act No. 19, HB0013), which revised qualifications, exemptions, jury lists and the mileage rule, and in 2020 (Enrolled Act No. 37, HB0065), which replaced the old exemption affidavit with today's sworn declaration. A 2024 bill, SF0030, dealt with the separate crime of influencing or intimidating jurors and judges, not with jury service.

Local practice does change. Teton County's district court moved to a six-month jury term as of April 2024, running April 1 through September 30 and October 1 through March 31 (Teton County).

Frequently asked questions

How much does jury duty pay in Wyoming?

Wyoming pays jurors $30 for each full or part day they attend, in every county. If you serve more than five consecutive court days, the judge may add $20 a day. You also get mileage at the state rate if you travel more than five miles each way.

Can my employer fire me for jury duty in Wyoming?

No. Under W.S. 1-11-401, an employer can't fire, threaten, intimidate or coerce you because of jury service. If it does, a court can order you reinstated and award up to $1,000 per violation plus your attorney's fees. You must sue within six months. Your employer doesn't have to pay your wages while you serve.

How do I get out of jury duty in Wyoming?

Paid firefighters, police officers, elected officials and active National Guard members are exempt, but they must claim the exemption with a sworn declaration. Anyone who has reached 72 may be excused on request, as may people caring for young children or dealing with their own illness or a family illness or death. Inconvenience to your business isn't enough. Make requests through eJuror or in writing to the court.

What happens if I miss jury duty in Wyoming?

A summoned juror who willfully skips service without a reasonable excuse can be arrested, made to attend, and held in contempt of court. The statute sets no fixed fine, so the judge decides the sanction. If you have an emergency, call the court before your reporting date.

How often can you be called for jury duty in Wyoming?

Once you've served on a jury, you can ask to be excused for the rest of that jury term and, at the judge's discretion, the next one. After a jury is discharged, its members may also ask to be excused for the rest of the calendar year. The state also tries not to call you for more than one state court in the same year, though federal court is separate.

Is there an age limit for jury duty in Wyoming?

You must be an adult, 18 or older. There's no upper limit, but anyone who has reached 72 may be excused on request. Make the request through eJuror or in writing to the court that summoned you.

Where these rules live

How this page is sourced. Every legal statement here comes from the Wyoming statutes, court rules and official court pages it cites and links. Text in block quotes is copied exactly from the official source; everything else is original writing. Pay figures and rules are as of November 4, 2026.

This page explains what the law says. It is legal information, not legal advice. Your summons and your court’s jury office have the final word on your service — if you are unsure what to do, call the number on your summons.