Uma Thurman’s stalker trial may be over, but for members of the jury, their chance to cash in on their brush with celebrity is just beginning. This week Wall Street Journal (NWS) reporter Emily Steel scored a page one story by recounting her time as a juror on a celebrity trial.

Steel isn’t the only juror to get paid for her courtroom observations. In January 2007, the nine jurors who sentenced Scott Peterson to death published an account entitled We, the Jury: Deciding the Scott Peterson Case. The book currently ranks #7 out of a 100 books about juries on Amazon.com (AMZN).

So if your jury duty is juicy what are the rules for making it pay off? For starters wait until you reach a verdict. During a trial, jurors are prohibited from communicating about the case to anyone. “All communication should go through the court to the judge or the bailiff,” says Matthew Wild, senior counsel at Levitt & Kaizer in New York City. “You are prohibited from speaking about the case to anybody, including a spouse, clergy member or doctor.” If a juror talks, he or she can be removed and replaced with an alternate. In the event there aren’t enough alternates remaining, it can cause a mistrial. “[Then] technically, they’d be fined or imprisoned, but I’ve never heard of it,” says Wild.

Once the case is complete a juror is allowed to dish on all the details, most of the time. “Sometimes judges will place limits on that and the argument is protection of jurors and privacy interest,” says David Hudson of the First Amendment Center in Washington, D.C. But gag orders are pretty limited outside of the parties and their lawyers. “We learn more about the justice system in general when we allow jurors to speak.”

Assuming there are no restraints placed against participants, “a juror has a first amendment right to write a book,” or appear on talk shows says Wild. “You have a right to talk about these things.” The exception? Members of a grand jury. Grand jury proceedings, which determine whether there is enough evidence in a case, are kept secret in order to preserve fairness in the event the matter goes to trial.

But what if you want to stay out of the limelight after a stint as a high profile juror? Post trial jury lists are public information, which means with a little digging your identity is discoverable. Unfortunately, there isn’t much you can legally do to ditch the media. “Try not to talk to anybody and get out the courthouse,” says Wild. “Most judges will help you find an alternate courthouse exit if you don’t want to be harassed.”

And if you’re looking to land a spot on a high profile case, your best bet is in Maine, New York, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania where you don’t have to wait for that subpoena to arrive in the mail. In those states residents can volunteer for jury duty. Just sign on the dotted line.

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