Can chronic illness be a long-term exemption from jury duty in Colorado?
Executive summary
Chronic illness can be a basis for long‑term (including permanent) excusal from jury duty in Colorado, but it is not automatic: a judge or jury commissioner must determine that the condition is permanent or causes undue or extreme physical hardship, and medical documentation is routinely required [1] [2] [3]. Local jury offices emphasize that Colorado rarely grants blanket exemptions and will often offer postponements or require evidence and procedural steps before the summons date [4] [5] [1].
1. Legal pathway: permanent excusal exists but requires a formal finding
Colorado law permits a person to be permanently excused only if a judge or jury commissioner determines the grounds for being excused are permanent in nature, meaning chronic conditions can qualify if shown to be permanent and disabling [1] [6]; federal practice in the District of Colorado explicitly lists being “disabled with a permanent or chronic condition that prevents you from serving” as grounds for excuse [2].
2. The practical bar: documentation and timing are mandatory
Courts and municipal jury offices uniformly require written medical proof—usually a doctor’s note or a completed medical disqualification form—and expect the juror to take all necessary steps to obtain a determination before the date on the summons, so a chronic illness claim without timely documentation is unlikely to secure permanent excusal [3] [5] [1] [2].
3. The statutory narrowness: “undue or extreme physical hardship” is defined and limited
Statutory language restricts excusal for physical hardship to specific scenarios—such as where serving would force someone to abandon direct care duties without a substitute or would cause physical hardship possibly resulting in illness or disease—so many chronic conditions will be evaluated against those standards rather than being automatically exempted [1] [6].
4. Local practice varies and courts prefer accommodation or postponement over excusal
Municipal pages for Colorado Springs and Boulder underscore that “no one is exempt” as a starting point and that courts “rarely excuse” jurors, preferring postponement or accommodations and working with jurors to find a workable date when possible, signaling administrative reluctance to remove jurors from service unless compelled by clear medical proof [4] [5] [7].
5. Recent and pending policy changes don’t remove the need to document medical incapacity
Legislative efforts to create age‑based opt‑outs (HB25‑1065) would let older residents opt out but do not alter the existing medical excusal rules for chronic illness; meanwhile the bill’s opponents warned of juror shortages—illustrating that political pressures shape how courts manage exemptions even as medical‑based excusals remain a case‑by‑case determination [8] [9] [10].
6. Bottom line and practical steps
A chronic illness can be a long‑term exemption in Colorado only if it rises to the level of a permanent disabling condition as judged by a judge or jury commissioner, supported by timely medical documentation, and evaluated against statutory limits on “undue or extreme physical hardship”; where the condition does not meet that threshold, courts commonly offer postponements or accommodations instead [1] [3] [2] [4].