Jurors more satisfied with court services and facilities

Jurors were more satisfied with court services and facilities last year than in 2017, the Ministry of Justice has found.

The annual Juror Satisfaction Survey showed that overall satisfaction of jurors was 93.2%, up from 91.5% in 2017. The rating is the highest result to date, the ministry said.

The survey, carried out from 14 May to 22 June 2018, gathered responses from 1,140 jurors who served at the District Courts and High Courts. Average satisfaction at District Courts was 93.8%, while the average was 87% at High Courts.

While emergency-procedure information and staff scores declined, gains were made on safety and the juror service website. Among the jurors surveyed, 72% said they were satisfied or very satisfied with emergency-procedure information. That’s down 2.3 percentage points from last year.

Overall satisfaction with staff was recorded at 98%, down 0.6 of a percentage point on the year. Information on defendant’s sentence was also down 0.7 of a percentage point to 60%.

The largest gain (7.3 percentage points) was for the juror service website, which scored 72%. Next was safety and security, with 91% and a gain of 4.1 percentage points. Postal information and up-to-date messaging on next-day need both increased 2.7 percentage points each, rated 91% and 55% respectively.

The Ministry of Justice said that it has made changes to the website to make it easier for jurors to find information they need. Jurors are now also able to accept summons online, enabling easier response and the ability to email jurors relevant information. The ministry has also started using historical data to predict how many people will attend, which possibly reduces summonses, wait times, and uncertainty.

It said that it still needs to improve communication to jurors around whether they are needed in court the next day. The ministry also said that it needs to increase awareness of the court’s emergency procedures and where to find defendant sentences.