Jury duty in Berks County: pay, postponement, exemptions

If you get a jury summons from Berks County, you are required to respond to it, and if you are told to report you serve for one day, or for the length of one trial if you are picked for a jury. Berks County jurors are paid $9 a day for the first three days and $25 a day after that, plus mileage, and the county pays for your parking.

The summons comes from the Berks County Court of Common Pleas, the county's trial court. Ignoring it can lead to a contempt-of-court finding, with a fine of up to $500, up to 10 days in jail, or both under state law, so respond even if you plan to ask to be excused.

How you get picked

Names are drawn at random from lists of Berks County residents. State law builds the statewide jury list from four sources: registered voters, people with a Pennsylvania driver's license, people who file a state income tax return, and people who receive cash assistance or food stamps. The county says it receives its list from the Department of State each October. Getting a summons does not mean you will sit on a jury. Most people who report spend the day in the Jury Assembly Room and are sent home if they are not chosen for a trial.

To serve on a Berks County jury under Pennsylvania law you must be a United States citizen, at least 18 years old, and live in Berks County, and you must be able to read, write, speak, and understand English. A person can be disqualified for a serious physical or mental condition that prevents service, or for a conviction of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison unless they have been pardoned or granted amnesty.

Step by step, from summons to service

1. When the summons arrives, fill out the juror questionnaire. You can complete it online through the county's Juror Questionnaire Login, using the juror number and PIN printed on the summons, or return the paper form by mail. As of November 1, 2026, the login site's security certificate had expired the day before, so browsers show a warning; the county's own instruction is that anyone unable to complete the questionnaire online should mail in the completed paper form.
2. If you need to be excused or moved to a later date, contact Jury Services before your date (see below). Do not simply skip it.
3. The day before your service date, after 5 p.m., check whether you have to report. Call 610-478-6400 (long distance 1-800-848-2080) or visit berksjury.com, which forwards to the county's Jury Services page. This same line carries weather delays and closings.
4. If you are told to report, go on your service date to the County Services Center, 633 Court Street, Reading. Use the main entrance on the Reed Street side, go through the metal detector and X-ray screening, and take the elevator to the second floor. Bring your license plate number; the county needs it to cover your parking.
5. A jury tipstaff checks your summons, confirms your information, and gives you a juror badge. Orientation takes place in the auditorium and the Jury Assembly Room, and you finish any remaining questionnaire there.
6. Wait in the Jury Assembly Room until you are either sent to a courtroom for jury selection or released for the day.
7. If you are selected for a trial, you serve until that trial ends. If you are not selected, your service is usually finished after that one day.

If you are sick on your service date, do not report. The county asks you to contact Jury Services as soon as possible instead. If you have a hearing, sight, or mobility need, call 610-478-6208, ext. 5704, before your date so the court can plan for it.

What jurors are paid

Berks County pays jurors a small daily amount set by the state, not lost wages:

• $9.00 a day for the first three days of service.
• $25.00 a day starting on the fourth day.
• 17 cents per mile for travel, for each day you serve.

The county mails you a check after your service is complete.

State law says an employer may not fire, threaten, or coerce an employee for serving on a jury, and an employee who is punished anyway can sue for lost wages and attorney fees. The law does not require your employer to pay your regular wages while you are out, so check your employer's own policy. The protection also has a gap: it does not cover employees of retail or service businesses with fewer than 15 workers, or of manufacturers with fewer than 40 workers. If you work for an employer that small, the same law lets you ask the court to be excused from service.

Parking

While you are serving, the county pays for parking in the Reed & Court Street Garage, which you enter from Court Street. Do not pay when you enter the garage, and bring your license plate number into the building. If you drive an oversized vehicle that does not fit the garage, use the open lot at 7th and Washington streets, entered from Washington Street.

How to postpone or be excused

Berks County handles requests to be excused, disqualified, or moved to a later date through its Jury Services office rather than an automatic online form. Call 610-478-6401 between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. to ask, and do it as early as possible instead of waiting until your service date.

Pennsylvania law lists the people who may claim an exemption from jury duty. The county highlights two of them, active military service and a showing that serving would be an undue hardship or extreme inconvenience, but the full list in the statute also covers people 75 or older who ask to be excused, women who are breastfeeding, people who served on a jury within the past three years (one year if the service lasted fewer than three days), close relatives of a criminal homicide victim, anyone who served on an 18-month statewide investigating grand jury, and judges. Judges aside, the county says no one is excused automatically because of their occupation. Explain your situation to Jury Services and ask what documentation they need. If you are summoned at a genuinely impossible time, ask to be moved to a later date rather than excused entirely.

What to bring, and what to leave home

Bring the summons portion of your questionnaire. Dress in business-casual clothing. Shorts, tank tops, and halter tops are not allowed.

Security screens everyone at the door. Leave weapons of any kind, scissors, aerosol sprays, knitting needles, metal utensils, and newspapers at home or in your car. You may bring a cell phone or laptop into the Jury Assembly Room, which has wifi, but you cannot use them inside a courtroom or a jury deliberation room. There are morning, afternoon, and lunch breaks, and a snack shop with vending machines on the second floor. Court normally runs 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., though a jury is occasionally kept later.

Where to go and who to call

Berks County Jury Services, County Services Center, 633 Court Street, 2nd Floor, Reading, PA 19601. Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., closed on holidays.

• General jury questions: 610-478-6402, or jury@berkspa.gov
• Exemptions and postponements: 610-478-6401
• Reporting status and weather line: 610-478-6400 (long distance 1-800-848-2080) or berksjury.com
• Accessibility needs: 610-478-6208, ext. 5704

Jury Services is part of the county court system. For how the courts fit alongside the county's other offices, see how Berks County government works. For another process that runs through the Court of Common Pleas, see our guide to the Berks County sheriff sale. The court's civil case records moved to a new online system, CourtPro, in the fall of 2026; our guide to searching Berks County court records explains what is online and what is not.

FAQ

How long does jury duty last in Berks County?

One day, unless you are chosen to sit on a trial. If you are picked for a jury, you serve until that trial is over. If you are not chosen, you are typically released at the end of your reporting day.

Do I still have to go if I got a summons?

You have to respond to the summons, but you do not always have to appear. The day before your date, after 5 p.m., call 610-478-6400 or check berksjury.com to see whether your group is being called in. Never ignore a summons, because a no-show can be treated as contempt of court, with a fine of up to $500, up to 10 days in jail, or both.

How much do you get paid for jury duty in Berks County?

The county pays $9 a day for the first three days and $25 a day beginning on the fourth day, plus 17 cents per mile for each day you travel, by check after your service ends. This is a state-set stipend, not your salary. Most employers cannot fire you for serving, but none is required to pay your wages during service, and the job protection does not reach the smallest retail, service, and manufacturing employers.

Can I get out of jury duty if it is a bad time?

You can ask to be excused or moved to a later date by calling Jury Services at 610-478-6401. Active military service, a genuine undue hardship or extreme inconvenience, being 75 or older, breastfeeding, and recent jury service are among the reasons in state law. Ask early and be ready to explain your situation.

Where do I park for jury duty?

The county covers parking in the Reed & Court Street Garage, so do not pay on the way in, and bring your license plate number. Oversized vehicles use the open lot at 7th and Washington streets. The reporting entrance is on the Reed Street side of the County Services Center at 633 Court Street.