Being on a mock jury is an excellent way to earn some extra cash! Many people do this in their spare time because it actually does pay off pretty well. The only problem is that you may not get contacted to participate that often if you don't live in a larger-sized city. For this reason, I would recommend signing up to join as many mock juror panels as possible to increase your chances of getting invited to participate.
If you sign up with a lot of different sites and don't start getting email invites right away, please don't get discouraged. You are not likely to get invited immediately.
How much do mock jurors get paid?
This depends on many things, including the complexity of the case and the panel you are signed up with. I've seen some figures as high as $100 for one jury session and others as low as $8 per case.
Why are mock jurors needed?
Lawyers often want to give cases a “trial run” before they actually happen to see how they might play out. For this reason, mock jurors are incredibly valuable because these lawyers can get the feedback they need before a case goes to trial.
What does being a mock juror involve?
Usually not more than an hour of your time. You'll be asked to either watch, listen to, or read over the details of the case and then provide your opinion at the end.
List of Mock Juror Sites
Here are some legit sites you can sign up with to start participating in mock trials. Please keep in mind that doing this won't pay your bills. It's just extra money here and there for doing something that you may consider fun. Please keep in mind that these opportunities are — as far as I can tell — completely legit, but that doesn't mean that you shouldn't still do your own research before signing up. Don't sign up for any that are asking you for more information than you are comfortable giving out.
Jury Talk
This site appears to be reputable, but they ask for a lot of information from potential jurors. They also do not list how much you can expect to get paid for participating.
If you decide to sign up here, please do let us know in the comments if you got invited to a mock trial and how much you were paid if you participated.
Go here to sign up for Jury Talk.
E-Jury
This site provides a little bit more information than Jury Talk does on how their process works. You can earn $5 to $10 per trial you participate in. You must be at least 18 years old, a US resident, and of sound mind in order to participate in mock trials.
Apparently the number of trials you'll get invited to do depends on your geographic location and how many cases there are in your area right now.
Go here to sign up for E-Jury.
Online Verdict
Online Verdict also provides a great deal of information on how their mock juror process works. According to the website, “Payment ranges from $20 for about 20-30 minutes of your time and can be $60 or more for longer cases.”
You must be a US resident aged 18 years or older in order to qualify to participate.
Go here to sign up as a mock juror for Online Verdict.
Resolution Research
Resolution Research is a well-known market research firm. They regularly recruit panelists to take your typical online paid surveys, but apparently they sometimes recruit mock jurors, too.
Currently, I'm getting a “connection not secure” warning when I attempt to click the link to sign up for mock jury studies.
You can go here to see the information on mock juries for Resolution Research.
Sign Up Direct
Sign Up Direct pays you very well for your mock jury work, but apparently it's not done virtually. If you're selected, you have to do it all live and in-person with other people who were selected as mock jurors.
They claim to pay around $150 for your time spent.
I noticed that while their website has a lot of information on how it works, they do ask for some very sensitive information — like your driver's license number — that you may not want to submit to them online. If possible, I'd recommend leaving that section blank if you fill out the form.
Go here to learn more about Sign Up Direct.
Virtual Jury
Virtual Jury gives very little information on their website about how their mock jury process works. It basically just says this:
Virtual Jury™ is an online focus group.
Once you have registered, you become an important part of our jury panel. When we have a focus group to conduct in your venue we will contact you and invite you to participate.
At that time you will given specific instructions and information about your private juror fee. We mail checks to our jurors within two weeks of participation.
And … well … that's pretty much all they tell you! If you've done mock juries for this site before, we'd love it if you could comment and let us know how it went for you. They just don't provide enough information at all on their website about their process.
Go here to check out the Virtual Jury website.
Is this opportunity not for you?
If you don't think this is something you want to do for extra cash, you could try rewards sites instead. These are less involved, more flexible, and just about anyone can participate.
Swagbucks is my favorite because you can cash out at just $5 and they have a ton of option for ways to get paid — Paypal, Amazon, and even gift cards to popular merchandisers.
Good luck with whatever you choose to do!
Post originally published on August 25, 2011. Updated and republished on April 24, 2020.
One of the sites above asks for a Driver’s License Number. I thought that odd. Upon more research, that’s often how identities are stolen. So I did not sign up there. Also, my Google Chrome told me Trial Practice has an expired security certificate and recommended I not go there because it may not be their actual site. Did not go there either.
Is there”EVER”any mock jury work in the triad areas of greensboro,winston salem,or highpoint,nc.I,ve checked my gmail repeatedl for at least two years and nothing ever show up for those areas.I have registered with the job search engine ”indeed”listing the above mentioned locations and still nothing.any help on this matter will be greatly appreciated.
I’ve found the majority of my mock juries on Craig’s list for my local area, under the “gigs” or “etc” sections. I’ve had really good luck that way.