Jury Service Law

Sources of Maryland jury law. The Maryland law addressing juries and jury service is generally found in the:

  • Maryland Constitution,
  • Maryland Code, and
  • Maryland Rules of Procedure.

Maryland Constitution. The current version of the Maryland Constitution was adopted by the citizens of this State in September 1867. The citizens have amended the Constitution regularly since its adoption.

Maryland Rules of Procedure. These Rules set out the procedures to be following in all Maryland State courts.

  • “Court rules” is another name for the Maryland Rules of Procedures.
  • The Rules are adopted by Maryland’s highest State court, the Supreme Court of Maryland.
  • There are separate Rules for different Maryland State courts. There are also different rules for civil, criminal, juvenile and appellate cases and dispute resolution mechanisms.
  • The Rules relevant to juries are found in the Rules concerning civil and criminal cases in the Circuit Courts.

Maryland Code. This is Maryland’s public law as passed by the General Assembly and subsequently published in a multi-volume print set and an online web version.
  • The various topics are arranged into broad segments called “articles” (currently there are around 30) and further subdivided into thousands of sections.
  • The statutes relevant to juries are generally found in the Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article.

More information. See the Maryland Constitution, Rules and Code online.