If you are working in COURT REPORTING FIRM or legal industry, probably you might have heard about ongoing chatter of court reporters being replaced by voice recorder technology. But it’s not practically possible to get in use with this technology in the courtroom due to various reasons as explained below.
There is a concept in the legal industry, i.e. time = money. In fact, it is one of the most time-sensitive industries. A court reporter must produce an accurate transcript of deposition and trials in an appropriately timely manner. Generally, reporters produce the transcript very quickly and timely.
The foremost ability of a court reporter is the ability to know who is speaking, read lips of soft-spoken talkers, mark keys section of transcript and highlight text code and make reference notes for reference that can be used for trials in future if happens. Some reporters offer real-time reporting or live transcripts to have instant access for legal parties, but it cannot be 100% cleaned, and may not include being 100% error-free.
Regardless of how technology has evolved and how now voices are recorded, it’s still not as accurate or trustworthy as a seasoned court reporter. Generally, in deposition and trials, there are more than 2-3 multi speakers. Every individual has their different type of accent, some talk very fast or get emotional. If the reporter misses any statement, he can ask, but if the recording technology misses something, then nothing can be done. Machines cannot ask people to repeat a word or stop someone from speaking further as a court reporter does. This can cause costly mistakes in transcripts for the parties involved in a specific case.
Some resources that indirectly play a role with court recording technology will be the law firm who will have to pay for the software and also for the hardware and have to purchase larger digital space storage for recording technology.
Also, when using voice recorder technology, if the device malfunction takes place- they will need to have a full time IT professional available to resolve any issue that occurs during the session. Adding all the indirect cost associated with adapting this recording technology will not ease the pocket but will surely make a hole.
Hence, for now, the CERTIFIED COURT REPORTERS are the only solution for the pocket-friendly budget thing, plus, these reporters are more professional to understand the expression during the session and are simple & feasible. However, technology has impacted the entire legal system by easing the workload but still the human judgement is invaluable.
Wrap Up!
While technologies have impacted and enhanced the court reporting system at a broader level, human judgment remains priceless. At Elizabeth Gallo, our team of professional court reporters are not only willing to learn and adapt a new way of working culture with technologies that have entered the legal system, but also hold that learning to make most of it for our clients.
Elizabeth Gallo Court Reporting, LLC offers National and ATLANTA COURT REPORTERS for expedite transcription services and on-field and off-field deposition services using the latest video technology. For more information, you can contact the firm and get prompt answers.