I’ve done a few things in my time. But one thing I haven’t done is serve on a jury.

For a long time, I put it down to me working in the media. But I was out of the media for a long time, as well. So I don’t know why I haven’t had the call up.

But, apparently - according to defense lawyer John Munro - I might be somewhat unusual in my enthusiasm.

He says people don’t have the same sense of civic duty as they used to and aren’t keen to do jury service.

And, because of that, we need to be offering more carrots for them to make themselves available - starting with paying them more.

I think that might help. But if someone has no sense of civic duty, paying them more to turn up isn’t going to make much difference, is it?

If more money is the only reason they do turn up - then do we really want them on a jury? Would they be there for the right reason?

At the moment, you get $62 a day for jury service. Which is chickenfeed.

As John Munro says, it’s nowhere near enough - especially for people who are self-employed.

At the same time, we’ve got this guy in Auckland saying today that he will never make himself available for jury duty again after his experience.

He’s really brassed-off after he took leave from his job and spent three days waiting around the court building doing nothing. He wasn’t selected for any trials and, after three days, they told him he was done.

Nico van Rooyen was very excited to be called up for jury service. But it’s only left him out of pocket and a harsh critic of the system.

He says: "I won't ever do it again. Believe you me, it's the biggest waste of time I have ever experienced, The selection process is a farce of gigantic proportions."

He says 80 people waited at the district court for several hours and then, without any scrutiny, were reduced to 40.

He was then told to turn-up at court the next morning. He did that and waited all day and was told to come back the following day.

Day three, he turned up and at lunchtime he was told he could leave.

He says the system needs a shake-up.

“Not a single one of my friends or customers had anything good to say about jury service. Some said, ‘just make an excuse for work’. Some had been excused from it between three and seven times. But not me, mate. I wanted to do it.”

Never again, though, he says.

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