Jury duty is an important civic and community duty that is vital to the American justice system. Without jurors, the justice system cannot work fairly. Through service on a jury, citizens have a direct hand in ensuring that our system of justice is preserved. Your contribution to the judicial system is invaluable and ensures that the justice system remains in the hands of the people. We appreciate your service and are confident that you will find your jury service to be a rewarding experience.

• Online Juror Registration Sheet (to be completed prior to start of service)
• Online Juror Hardship Form (Jurors may request to be excused from service for any hardship permitted by law. Please see below for more information on hardship excusals. The online form must be submitted in advance and you will be advised if the Judge has approved your release from jury service due to hardship)

Jury Term: Jury Service is nine (9) working days.  Jury cases are set Monday through Friday of the first week and Monday through Thursday of the second week. Occasionally, jury service may be extended if a case is not completed. Jurors should arrive by 8:30am to be in the court they are assigned.  You will be required to pass through security at the courthouse located in the City-County Building at 400 Main Street, Knoxville, Tennessee.  Unless advised differently, jurors should report to the Knox County Circuit Court Clerk’s office located on the east end of the Main floor, M-30. 

Parking: Jurors are provided with free parking in the Dwight Kessel Parking Garage at 900 State Street. Please bring your parking card to the court to be validated. The parking garage is located two blocks from the courthouse.  Click here for map (pdf)

Juror Fees: Jurors are paid $11.00 each day that they report. A certificate of attendance is available for juror's employers and can be obtained from the Clerk's office.  Please see the reverse side of your jury summons for information regarding notifying your employer about jury service and your employer’s obligation to permit your attendance for jury service and information on payment by your employer.

Hardship:  Jurors will only be excused if serving will cause an undue or extreme physical or financial hardship. Such a hardship may be present if the juror has a mental or physical condition which causes the juror to be incapable of performing jury service, or if the juror would: 

1. be required to abandon a person under such juror's personal care or supervision due to the impossibility of obtaining an appropriate substitute caregiver during the period of participation in the jury pool or on the jury;
2. incur costs that would have a substantial adverse impact on the payment of the juror's necessary daily living expenses or on those for whom such juror provides the principal means of support;
3. suffer physical hardship that would result in illness or disease; or
4. be deprived of compensation due to the fact that the prospective juror works out-of-state and the out-of-state employer is unwilling to compensate the juror, or that the prospective juror is employed by an employer who is not required to compensate jurors and declines to do so voluntarily. An undue or extreme physical or financial hardship does not exist solely based on the fact that a juror will be required to be absent from the juror's place of employment.

A JUDGE WILL REVIEW YOUR REQUEST FOR A HARDSHIP EXCLUSION AND YOU WILL BE ADVISED IF YOU ARE EXCUSED.

Miscellaneous:

• The temperature in the courtroom fluctuates. Please dress in layers and feel free to bring a sweater, coat or blanket if you do not like to be cold.
• There are soda and snack vending machines located in the courthouse and there is a coffee and snack bar on the 1^st floor of the courthouse. (The Circuit Court rooms are located on the Main Floor of the courthouse.)  You may bring your own drinks in a cup or bottle that has a lid.
• Please complete the online juror information sheet and you will be advised during your jury term of the days you will be required to report by email and/or text message based upon the information you have provided with your online registration. There is also a jury service line that will have a pre-recorded message that is updated daily which you can check for instructions.  The information is updated daily at 4:00 p.m.  It is also a good idea to check the number in the morning before you travel to the courthouse to see if there has been any change.   The Jury Service phone lines are:
  • Division I 865-215-4124
  • Division II 865-215-4122
  • Division III 865-215-4123

You cannot leave a message on these lines.

• Any questions concerning Jury Service should be addressed to the Jury Coordinator, Phone:865-215-2550 Email:jury.coordinator@knoxcounty.org. Messages that are left after 4:00 pm may not be returned until the next day.