How to Get Out of Jury Duty Without Having to Dress in a Princess Leia Costume

Depending on your sense of civic pride, jury duty can be either an exciting opportunity to watch the Constitution in action or an annoying way to spend one or many of your days. If you are of the latter opinion (what I like to call the Julia Sugarbaker frame of mind), these are some tips for getting out of jury duty.

Even though it might be tempting, going the Liz Lemon route and dressing in a funny costume in an attempt to appear incompetent will most likely lead to your being found in contempt of court. When in doubt (and this goes for most things in life) go the legal way, not the zany one.

One of the easiest and most effective ways to get out of jury duty is, when being questioned by the defense and prosecution while still in the jury pool, you adamantly declare that you cannot be fair and impartial. This is important because jurors are supposed to be as unbiased as possible in the court room. Possible reasons for being biased include knowing the defendant or someone else connected to the case, having heard information (including rumors and conjecture) beforehand, and having a bias against the type of case that you would be working on (for instance, if the defendant is accused of rape, having had either yourself, a friend, or family member be personally affected by that crime). No matter what, however, when you state your reasons for being unable to be fair and impartial, they must always be the truth. Lying in the courtroom, for any reason, is illegal.

A more involved way to get out of jury duty is to prove that you are financially incapable of taking the time off from work. While some companies offer to pay their employees' wages during jury duty, many do not, so find out which kind yours is. In addition, bring a copy of your last pay stub and last year's tax returns in order to prove that taking time off (especially for a long, involved trial) could hurt you or your family financially.

If you're a student, getting out of jury duty is quite easy. Bring in proof that you are enrolled at an institution of higher learning, whether a high school, college, or graduate school. Include a copy of your tuition bill, your class schedule, or another document that proves that you are enrolled and can't take time off from class. Just make sure that school is actually in session at this time and it's not the middle of summer!

Finally, another way to prove incapable of serving on a jury is to show proof of illness. If a chronic illness prevents you from paying complete attention to the case, bring in a note from your doctor that explains just what your condition is and why you should be excused. Some reasons include the need for a dialysis machine for several hours a day, suffering from intense migraines or a stress disorder, or even chronic back pain that prevents you from sitting upright for very long.