Your first postponement must be granted if you ask the way your county requires and pick a date no more than six months after your original date1. Do it online or by phone at least a week before your date2.
Dates that matter
Your first postponement
The first postponement is granted if you have not already been postponed or excused, you apply the way your commissioner requires, and you choose a date when court is in session1. The law lets you ask for it by telephone5, and the courts also allow it online2.
Judiciary Law § 517(a)(2):
An application for postponement of jury service shall be granted hereunder provided: (i) such service has not already been postponed or excused, (ii) the application is made at such time and in such manner as the commissioner of jurors requires, and (iii) the postponement is to a date certain when the court is in session not more than six months after the date on which such service otherwise is to commence and such date is selected by the prospective juror
Find your latest postponement date
Enter your original service date from your summons. Nothing you enter is stored.
The checker applies Judiciary Law § 517(a)(2)1.
A second or third postponement
After your first postponement, contact your county's Commissioner of Jurors6. To request another, submit a written application with documentation acceptable to the Commissioner, explaining why serving on the rescheduled date would cause a hardship you did not anticipate when you got your previous postponement. Unless extraordinary circumstances apply, the Commissioner can grant no more than three postponements in all, including the first, and their combined length cannot exceed 18 months7.
Breastfeeding mothers
With a note from a doctor or nurse practitioner, a breastfeeding mother must be excused or postponed8, and her postponement date can be up to two years later4.
If your request is refused
You can apply to the court that would hear your case, or the court supervising the grand jury9.
What to do next
- Have your summons in front of you, then postpone online or by phone at least a week ahead2: New York courts juror site
- Pick a date 2 to 6 months from your summons date3.
- Keep the confirmation of your new date.
Related
Sources
9 official sources, with the exact sentence each rule comes from
- N.Y. Judiciary Law § 517 – Excuses and postponements. N.Y. Judiciary Law § 517(a)(2)."An application for postponement of jury service shall be granted hereunder provided: (i) such service has not already been postponed or excused, (ii) the application is made at such time and in such manner as the commissioner of jurors requires, and (iii) the postponement is to a date certain when the court is in session not more than six months after the date on which such service otherwise is to commence and such date is selected by the prospective juror"
- NY Courts – Jurors: Questions & Answers (FAQs). NY Courts juror FAQ."You can postpone your service once online or by calling 800-449-2819 at least one week before your date of service."
- NY Courts - Jurors: Questions & Answers (FAQs). NY Courts juror FAQ."Pick a date between 2 and 6 months from the date on your summons"
- N.Y. Judiciary Law § 517 - Excuses and postponements. N.Y. Judiciary Law § 517(a)(2)."provided that if the prospective juror is a breastfeeding mother, the postponement date may be a date certain up to two years after the date on which such service otherwise is to commence."
- N.Y. Judiciary Law § 517 - Excuses and postponements. N.Y. Judiciary Law § 517(a)(1)."The application shall be presented to the commissioner at such time and in such manner as such commissioner shall require, except that an application for postponement of the initial date for jury service may be made by telephone."
- NY Courts - Jurors: Questions & Answers (FAQs). NY Courts juror FAQ."Any future request for postponement or excusal must be made by contacting your local commissioner of juror's office."
- Justia - N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. tit. 22, § 128.6-a. 22 NYCRR § 128.6-a(a)(2)."(2) The commissioner may grant a prospective juror's subsequent request for a postponement of jury service, but only upon a written application, containing documentation acceptable to the commissioner, showing that an inability to obtain a postponement would result in a hardship that was unanticipated at the time of the prior postponement. Absent extraordinary circumstances, the commissioner shall not grant a prospective juror more than three postponements of jury service, nor shall the aggregate period of postponements granted to a prospective juror exceed 18 months."
- N.Y. Judiciary Law § 517. N.Y. Judiciary Law § 517(a)(1),(2)."provided that if the prospective juror is a breastfeeding mother and submits with her application a note from a physician or nurse practitioner indicating that the prospective juror is breastfeeding, the commissioner shall excuse the prospective juror or postpone the time of jury service."
- N.Y. Judiciary Law § 517. N.Y. Judiciary Law § 517(b)."A person whose application has been denied by the commissioner, or who has not applied to the commissioner for an excuse or postponement, may apply to the trial court, or to the court having supervision of the grand jury, as the case may be"
Reviewed by Roger K. Neustadt, JD, attorney admitted in Georgia. Verified November 10, 2026.
Roger K. Neustadt is admitted in Georgia; pages about other states and federal courts are general information checked against official sources. How we check every rule: editorial policy. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.
This page explains the law in general terms and is not legal advice. Jury Duty Explained is not affiliated with any court. Your summons and your court's instructions control, so check them first.