Getting out of jury duty and resolving deadlocks will be made easier in the hope of reducing how many NSW trials end without a verdict.
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About one in 10 trials that began in the NSW District Court in 2022 ended with a hung jury or were aborted.
One of a series of tweaks to state laws will clarify that jurors with temporary disabilities or other physical or mental conditions can be exempted from jury service.
Once at court, potential jurors can ask to be excused without having to make the request in writing and having to link it to health or matters that could be embarrassing.
Those changes would ensure people unable to properly perform the role of a juror were excused before they were empanelled, government MP Mark Buttigieg told parliament.
"Removing these jurors early will reduce the risk of trials not being able to continue because a jury needs to be excused or discharged during the trial," he said on Thursday.
Deadlocked juries will also be offered to return a majority verdict of 11-1 or 10-1 after four hours of deliberations, down from eight.
The serving of jury summons will also move into the 21st century by permitting the documents to be emailed. At present, only post or hand-delivery is allowed.
But jurors might find themselves sidelined more often in verdict deliberations, with courts to be allowed to have expanded juries in more circumstances, such as trials involving distressing material.
Once criminal trials reach the deliberation stage, expanded juries are required to be whittled back to 12 members through a ballot process.
The amendments were introduced to parliament on Thursday after a series of reviews, including by the District Court chief judge.
Senior judges, magistrates and sheriffs were also consulted, as were NSW Police, the Director of Public Prosecutions and the NSW Law Society.
The proposed changes come as more people are stuck waiting more than a year for their day in court.
About 55 per cent of District Court trial matters completed in 2022 had been on the books for more than a year, compared with 28 per cent of cases in 2017.
Australian Associated Press
