You got the summons. You did the math. Twelve dollars a day, and your rent doesn't care. How much does jury duty pay in Arizona? $12 a day of attendance, plus mileage, and that is the headline for state court. The part that changes the math is buried in a fund most summoned jurors never hear about, and it is worth knowing before you report.
Arizona pays its state court jurors $12 for each day of attendance, under Arizona Revised Statutes 21-221. Show up for a full day of jury selection and you get the $12 plus mileage at the state employee rate, currently $0.67 a mile round trip. Show up, get released without being placed on a jury, and you get the mileage only. No daily fee. The system runs one day or one trial: you serve one day of selection, or one trial to its conclusion. Most trials run two to seven days.
How much does jury duty pay in Arizona: the $12 and the fund
Twelve dollars won't cover lunch, and the legislature knew it. Arizona built the Fair Jury Improvement Fund to replace lost earnings for jurors who serve on a trial in superior court, from day one. The maximum is $300 a day. Unemployed and retired jurors can get $28 a day in supplemental compensation. The deputy jury clerk hands out the claim form if you ask, and you will need documentation of your regular earnings. Ask on day one, not at the end of the trial.
Here is what the fund is worth, illustrated. Take a five-day superior court trial and a $200-a-day job. The court's own pay is $60 for the week plus, say, $67 in mileage on a 20-mile round trip. The fund can replace the lost wages up to $300 a day, which covers the full $1,000. Without it, the same week costs you $873 out of pocket. That claim form is the most valuable piece of paper in the courthouse, and almost nobody asks for it.
The employer rule
Your employer cannot fire you, demote you, or retaliate against you for serving. That is Arizona Revised Statutes 21-236. The law does not require them to pay you while you serve, and most employers won't. The one exception worth knowing: salaried exempt employees can't have their weekly salary docked for a partial-week jury absence under federal wage rules, though the employer can subtract the $12 daily fee from that week's pay.
And if you are thinking of ignoring the summons: willful failure to appear can bring a fine of up to $500 and a contempt finding, and the court can order you to appear on another date. Arizona excuses jurors 75 and older on request, and financial hardship is a real excuse category, but you have to document it and submit it through the court. The summons is not a suggestion.
The day-one checklist
Tell your employer the day the summons arrives. Ask HR in writing whether jury leave is paid. If you are headed to superior court and will lose income, ask the deputy jury clerk for the fund claim form before you sit down. Track your mileage from your home address, since the court calculates from your town of residence. Keep the summons as your proof of service if your employer pushes back.
Nobody advertises the fund, which is why most jurors leave it untouched. Now you know. Ask for the form.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Arizona pay jurors per day?
$12 per day of attendance under Arizona Revised Statutes 21-221, plus mileage at the state employee rate, currently $0.67 per mile round trip. Jurors released on the first day without being placed on a jury receive mileage only, no daily fee.
What is the Arizona Fair Jury Improvement Fund?
A state fund that replaces lost earnings for jurors who serve on a trial in superior court, from day one, up to $300 per day. Unemployed and retired jurors can receive $28 per day in supplemental compensation. Request the claim form from the deputy jury clerk.
Does my employer have to pay me during jury duty in Arizona?
No. Arizona law protects your job but does not require wage replacement. Employers cannot fire or retaliate against you for serving, and salaried exempt employees cannot have their weekly salary docked for partial-week jury absences under federal wage rules.
What happens if I ignore a jury summons in Arizona?
Willful failure to appear without a valid excuse can bring a fine of up to $500, a contempt finding, and an order to appear on another date. Keep ignoring it and the consequences escalate.
How much does federal jury duty pay in Arizona?
$50 per day, the federal rate, which applies in U.S. district courts regardless of the state you are in.
Run the numbers for your situation.
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