The people who are aware of the legal system and the processes know how essential the court reporters are during the proceeding as the witnesses, attorneys, and the judge speaks. In many cases, it is declared illegal to initiate the proceeding in a courtroom in the absence of court reporters.
Civil proceedings and other courtroom proceedings are designated on a local level, whereas federal court proceedings must be recorded according to the Court Reporter Statute. Although the judge may be given the option of using a national court reporting or recording device, the necessity of having an accurate transcript of the case frequently necessitates the use of certified court reporters.
The Transcript
The certified court reporters must become proficient in using a stenotype machine to record speech at 225 words per minute to seize a verbatim record of all that occurs in the court. In addition, the certified court reporter must receive special training in law, courtroom proceedings, legal terminology, and medical terminology, among other subjects. The transcript of this record is then written and filed with the court clerk as an official case record. Throughout the case, the transcript may be consulted within the court, and attorneys involved in the case may also request copies to review the proceedings.
If a case is appealed, transcripts become even more important. An accurate record of previous court proceedings is required for the right to appeal, which is an essential component of the American justice system. Judges frequently use the transcript when deciding whether or not to grant an appeal, and appellants can choose to include the transcript or a portion of it in their appeal request.
The Price of Technology
To save money and space, audio and video court reporting equipment have been used to replace court reporters in some courtrooms. Sadly, these have failed on multiple fronts.
When audio has been used, people in the courtroom haven't always spoken loud enough, there's often background noise or papers moving near microphones, and microphones don't work or aren't turned on, so a lot of the testimony can't be heard.
Nonetheless, a written transcript of the events must be provided. A court reporter transcribes stenotype notes, but transcribing from audio takes much longer, is less accurate, and costs much more than that. Sadly, many courts have discovered that the cost of paying freelance transcriptionists to understand what has been said is higher than the cost of hiring a full-time court reporter.
In addition to the inability of audio systems to produce satisfactory results, initial installation costs rarely fall within budgets, and upgrades further increase costs. Video court reporting poses a potential threat to the role and function of court reporters because it records court proceedings without a camera operator. The proceedings must be recorded by five to seven cameras and roughly the same number of microphones in a typical courtroom. Video court reporting has the unique advantage of bringing court proceedings to life.
Confidentiality
A significant amount of information provided to a court reporter is confidential and cannot be disclosed to anyone outside the court. Court reporters are aware of their duty of confidentiality because they know that a breach of confidentiality can spell disaster for their court reporting career. Therefore, you can trust a reputable stenographer from places like Georgia Reporting to maintain the highest integrity of the information entrusted to them.
Impartiality
Lawyers and attorneys on both sides of the case are entitled to their biases and no one expects them to be impartial. However, the same is not true of court reporters.
These professionals are trained to avoid expressing an opinion about the witness's testimony and to maintain complete impartiality during your trial. This is an important part of knowing that you can trust an official copy that has no additions or deletions that could affect the record.
Professionalism
The first characteristic of a professional court reporter is the ability to arrive on time. A trial cannot begin until the reporter is ready to write, and law firms cannot bill for consumed time, so promptness is one of the most vital virtues of national court reporting.
Courtesy is another characteristic of professionalism. Most court reporters are so polite that they are rarely heard during a trial. They take their work very seriously and focus on documenting every word spoken during an exam or application with extreme accuracy.
Speed and Accuracy
In addition to maintaining an impartial position, the key to success as a court reporter is the ability to transcribe the spoken word with incredible speed and accuracy. To become a qualified court reporter, an applicant must transcribe 200 words per minute while maintaining 97.5 percent accuracy. This will weed out anyone who has not mastered shorthand, and you can raise your standards when hiring a stenographer.
Natural Products
Court records are the key to securing a conviction. This is the official record of what was said during the bill or trial. Working with experienced certified court reporters ensures that you get what you paid for – a high-quality transcript that is error-free and adheres to the profession's standardized formatting guidelines.
Bottom Line
Rather than replacing court reporters, as many predicted, technology's best attempt to date has only served to obstruct justice and waste money rather than save it. Certified court reporters are expected to see a 10% increase in demand over the next ten years. It would appear that the position of national court reporting in the courtroom is nearly as secure and essential to our justice system as that of judges and attorneys.