<P> Serving on a jury is normally compulsory for individuals who are qualified for jury service . A jury is intended to be an impartial panel capable of reaching a verdict . Procedures and requirements may include a fluent understanding of the language and the opportunity to test jurors ' neutrality or otherwise exclude jurors who are perceived as likely to be less than neutral or partial to one side . Juries are initially chosen randomly , usually from the eligible population of adult citizens residing in the court 's jurisdictional area . Jury selection in the United States usually includes organized questioning of the prospective jurors ( jury pool ) by the lawyers for the plaintiff and the defendant and by the judge -- voir dire -- as well as rejecting some jurors because of bias or inability to properly serve ( `` challenge for cause '' ) , and the discretionary right of each side to reject a specified number of jurors without having to prove a proper cause for the rejection ( `` peremptory challenge '' ) , before the jury is impaneled . </P>
who can and is required by law to do jury service
usually from the eligible population of adult citizens residing in the court 's jurisdictional area