Dec. 20--Jurors in Illinois will get a bump in pay under a measure Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn signed into law Friday in hopes of making civic duty a better investment.
The law will make jury pay $25 for the first day of service and $50 for each additional day. Cook County has paid $17.20, but other counties in Illinois were within the decades-old state law that set the minimum at $4 to $10 a day.
The new law also reduces the number of jurors in civil cases from 12 to six, a provision the clout-heavy trial lawyers wanted as they pushed the measure through the fall session that wrapped up this month.
Proponents argued the lower number of jurors in civil trials will save counties money at a time when they will pay more for the higher juror paychecks. But many county officials have complained the expense for paying more to jurors will be more than the savings that come with smaller juries overall.
Quinn signed a separate measure into law that would lift the 10-year time period in which a lawsuit may be filed over claims on asbestos-related sickness, a measure heavily backed by Democrats and the trial lawyers who support them.
Both laws take effect June 1.
rlong@tribpub.com
