Technology is here to stay, and people from all walks of life face the choice of either acknowledging this reality or running from it. Some even choose to embrace the presence of technology, as it will make life easier if it’s used properly. When it comes to the role of court reporters in a litigation setting, technology can be extremely useful for everyone involved in a case. While there is no way to successfully remove the human element from court reporting, technology can speed the process and make records available almost instantaneously. Everyone involved with any type of case sees the same instantaneous benefit from real-time court reporting.
What Is Real-Time Court Reporting?
Real-time court reporting involves the use of devices that can help to transcribe a court reporter’s shorthand notes into readable text within seconds. Making this happen often involves the use of traditional court reporter stenotypes. A laptop or some other device is nearby, and software that is integrated into the system can translate shorthand notes into a verbatim record of what was said. When this is done, the newly-transcribed record can appear on screens for people to see and review instantly. These screens can be located in a courtroom or even in some remote location. This process combines the skill and experience of a court reporter with the capabilities of software.
Advantages of Real-Time Court Reporting
There are several advantages to using real-time court reporting. For instance, litigators can not only see what is being transcribed in real time and therefore avoid the need to take notes, but many systems allow for interaction. This interactive capability allows attorneys to annotate and highlight certain pieces of testimony that they may want to review with a subsequent witness. At the end of the day in court, the attorneys can review that day’s record and prepare for the rest of the proceeding without having to wait for transcripts to be ready.
Why Do Some Court Reporting Firms Incorporate Real-Time Capabilities?
As is seemingly always the case with technology, offering litigators the opportunity to make use of real-time court reporting requires capital investment, training and specialization. Some court reporting firms simply are not in a position to make this commitment. As such, attorneys who need to hire court reporters for a trial, a deposition or any other type of proceeding will need to ask the court reporting firm if this type of production is available.
The Atlanta court reporters at Elizabeth Gallo Court Reporting, LLC do offer real-time court reporting services. We have always believed that technology should be used to make everyone’s job easier, and we have also long believed that these investments ultimately allow our clients to spend less on our services. If you would like to learn more about how we can help you in this manner, contact the team at Elizabeth Gallo Court Reporting, LLC today to learn more about how we can help you improve your ability to represent your clients.
