WOMEN JURORS

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30215, 21 August 1963, Page 2

WOMEN JURORS

Petition To Parliament (Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON, Aug. 20. Legislation providing that women shall be liable and qualified for jury service on the same basis as men was sought in a petition presented in the House of Representatives today. Mr D. J. Riddiford (Govt.. Wellington Central) presented the petition on behalf of Mrs Alicia Doreen Grant. Dominion president of the National Council of Women, and 5133 other signatories. The petition said that, under the present law, every eligible man in each jury district was liable and qualified to serve as a juror. No such general provision applied to women, who were required to notify the sheriff of the district Supreme Court in writing if they wished to serve. The effect of this discriminatory provision was that the only women whose names appeared on the jury list were those who had a special interest in some kind of jury service. In the present circumstances, women were less acceptable as jurors than were men. The present law contained many exemptions relating to occupations for men and very few further exemptions would be necessary to provide for the special circumstances of some women. The petition was referred to the Petitions Committee.