{"data":{"id":"us-ny/n.y.-judiciary-law-517","jurisdiction":"us-ny","citation":"N.Y. Judiciary Law § 517","heading":"Excuses and postponements","body":"§ 517. Excuses and postponements. (a) (1) Except as otherwise provided\nin paragraph two of this subdivision, the commissioner of jurors may, in\nsuch commissioner's discretion, on the application of a prospective\njuror who has been summoned to attend, excuse such prospective juror\nfrom a part or the whole of the time of jury service or may postpone the\ntime of jury service to a later day during the same or any subsequent\nterm of the court, provided that if the prospective juror is a\nbreastfeeding mother and submits with her application a note from a\nphysician or nurse practitioner indicating that the prospective juror is\nbreastfeeding, the commissioner shall excuse the prospective juror or\npostpone the time of jury service. The application shall be presented to\nthe commissioner at such time and in such manner as such commissioner\nshall require, except that an application for postponement of the\ninitial date for jury service may be made by telephone.\n  (2) An application for postponement of jury service shall be granted\nhereunder provided: (i) such service has not already been postponed or\nexcused, (ii) the application is made at such time and in such manner as\nthe commissioner of jurors requires, and (iii) the postponement is to a\ndate certain when the court is in session not more than six months after\nthe date on which such service otherwise is to commence and such date is\nselected by the prospective juror, provided that if the prospective\njuror is a breastfeeding mother, the postponement date may be a date\ncertain up to two years after the date on which such service otherwise\nis to commence.\n  (b) A person whose application has been denied by the commissioner, or\nwho has not applied to the commissioner for an excuse or postponement,\nmay apply to the trial court, or to the court having supervision of the\ngrand jury, as the case may be, which may, in its discretion, excuse\nsuch person from a part or the whole of the time of jury service, or may\npostpone the time of jury service to a later day during the same or any\nsubsequent term of the court. If the applicant cannot personally attend,\nhe or she shall send the summons and application by a person capable of\nmaking the necessary proof in relation to the application.\n  (c) In determining whether an application for excusal should be\ngranted, the commissioner or the court shall consider whether the\napplicant has a mental or physical condition that causes him or her to\nbe incapable of performing jury service or there is any other fact\nindicates that attendance for jury service in accordance with the\nsummons would cause undue hardship or extreme inconvenience to the\napplicant, a person under his or her care or supervision, or the public.\nExcept as provided in paragraph two of subdivision (a) of this section,\nin determining whether an application for postponement should be\ngranted, the commissioner or the court shall be guided by standards\npromulgated by the chief administrator of the courts.","path":["Judiciary Law","Article 16. Selection of Jurors"],"source_url":"https://legislation.nysenate.gov/api/3/laws/JUD/517","current_through":"2026-09-11","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T19:32:45Z","sha256":"3a3a85b2fff24d11c610b9715f0846d8b9fa318688d872ced913e295d824c249","source_id":"us-ny","stale":false,"prev":"us-ny/n.y.-judiciary-law-516","next":"us-ny/n.y.-judiciary-law-518"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}