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GET PAID TO BE A MOCK JUROR
If you love criminal justice and helping people then being a mock juror is an awesome way to earn extra money!
Some mock juries can be conducted from home and some require you to spend a few hours or a day in a focus group setting.
While being a mock juror will not make you rich its a good option for some extra income and I think it would be a great experience as well. I just signed up to be one with a few companies and I will be posting a review after I get a few cases completed.
Keep in mind that you may not always have cases and that you may want to sign up for a few companies to get more chances of getting picked.
Most of these companies will only choose people in the area in which the case is being tried so depending on where you live you may have fewer cases.
What is a Mock Jury?
First, let’s go over what a mock jury actually is. The term “mock jury” refers to a type of group research that allows lawyers to evaluate the potential reactions of jurors to their evidence and arguments before a case goes to trial.
Once the case is presented, participants then discuss the evidence and arguments.
Juror’s feedback is used to discover the strengths and weaknesses of their case, the possible settlement value, and general attitudes and opinions about their case facts.
While traditional mock juries are conducted in person, online mock juries and in-person focus groups are a more affordable option for lawyers to get feedback on their cases.
What is required to become a mock juror?
While the criteria for each company may vary, below are the most common requirements to be a mock juror.
- Be over the age of 18;
- Be a U.S. citizen;
- Not a lawyer or an insurance company representative;
- Never convicted of a felony or under indictment
If you meet these criteria then check out the companies who hire mock jurors below. I signed up for a few but as with anything else you should do your own research to determine which ones are right for you.
FINDING MOCK JUROR JOBS
There are a number of companies hiring mock jurors but the list below is the ones I found to be the most popular and easiest to sign up for.
OnlineVerdict
Online Verdict is the one I first found out about and signed up for (review coming as soon as I get a few cases completed).
OnlineVerdict provides online case review and juror feedback services to attorneys.
How Does OnlineVerdict Work?
You will review interesting legal cases from the comfort of your home, provide feedback through an online questionnaire, and be paid well for your time.
When an attorney posts an eligible case in your county or federal district, you will receive an email invitation from OnlineVerdict to review the case at your convenience (once enough responses are received, the case will close and no additional participants are needed.)
After accepting the invitation to be an online juror, you will be asked to agree to the confidentiality policy, review the case materials and answer all questions about that case.
There are no right or wrong answers. Attorneys benefit most from your honest reaction to the information that was presented to you.
Jurors are paid between $20-$60 depending on the case. Cases take between 20-60 minutes so the pay, in my opinion, is pretty decent.
Payments are sent out 1-2 weeks after you review the case according to the FAQ’s on their website. Payments are only made by check to the address in which you signed up with so that they can verify you are who you say you are.
You can find out more and sign up for Online Verdict here.
eJury
eJury is another popular option but pays a bit less than Online Verdict at $5 to $10 depending on the case.
How Does eJury Work?
eJury provides an attorney the opportunity to “pre-try” the case before it goes to trial in front of an actual jury at the courthouse. Cases at the courthouse are usually tried to juries of 12 people. At eJury, each case is tried to a minimum of 50 people.
This provides the attorney with a tremendous amount of feedback which he/she will use to establish a settlement value, find strengths and weaknesses in the evidence, learn “public” attitudes, improve jury selection, discover the most effective arguments.
The average case takes about 35 minutes to complete according to their FAQ’s.
You can find out more about eJury and sign up here.
Jury Test
JuryTest is a case evaluation and strategy development tool. It’s a fast and cost-efficient alternative to mock trials and litigation focus groups.
JuryTest was created by Adam Rosen, J.D., Ph.D., a jury consultant trained in both law and clinical psychology and an instructor in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.
How Does Jury Test Work?
Counsel records a case summary or argument on the telephone through Jury Test. Jury Test will choose mock jurors (you) from geographically selected groups, and you as the juror will listen to the case and review all of the exhibits.
You will then provide feedback securely on the JuryTest website, where the attorney can analyze and sort juror responses and learn the issues that jurors care about.
Jury Test will inform you of the availability of a case for review, as well as the time involved (usually 1-2 hours) and the compensation for the case (usually $20 – $50), depending on the time involved.
You can find out more and sign up for Jury Test here.
Trial Juries
Trial Juries is the juror recruitment tool for Verdict Services Inc. (VSI), a Duluth, GA-based company, which conducts pre-trial Focus Groups and Mock Trials for Attorneys.
How Does Trial Juries Work?
If selected as a Juror for VSI, you will hear the facts in a real court case, involving real people. You will help decide the case by giving your opinion. You will be paid $100 to $150 per day, depending on the length of the session.
These are in-person focus groups so you will have to go to a physical location to participate but they do pay a lot more than online mock juries.
You can find out more about Trial Juries and sign up here.
Have you been on a mock jury before? Let me know in the comments how it was! Have any other questions or comments? Leave them in the comment section below!
