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Abraham Lincoln once said that “the greatest service of citizenship is jury duty.”

Each day, citizens throughout the United States receive letters summoning them to appear for jury duty. Such letters are not mere suggestions. Recipients are legally bound to report for jury duty, and failure to do so can result in fines and other penalties.

A jury summons letter also typically includes instructions for seeking an exemption or excusal, and courts often excuse parents and primary caregivers of minor children from jury duty. Child care responsibilities are likely one of the most common reasons for jury excusal in the United States, and it raises the following questio

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