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Court Reporting Basics: What Does a Court Reporter DO?

Posted on July 19, 2023 in: Certified Georgia Court Reporters, Court Reporters, Court Reporting, Depositions, Process Servers, Remote Court Court Reporters, Remote Court Reporting, Remote Depo, Remote Deposition, Remote Videographer, Remote Videotaped Deposition|Comments Off on Court Reporting Basics: What Does a Court Reporter DO?

What Does a Court Reporter Do: Hands on a stenographWhat is the purpose of court reporters?

In basic terminology, the main task of a court reporter is to capture every spoken word during a proceeding and to identify who spoke the words. In decades past, this was done by a court reporter using shorthand — a method of fast writing where symbols are substituted for words and sounds. For the last 100 years or so, the stenotype machine has been used — which is a machine-based method of fast writing where keys make marks representing words, partial words, and sounds. There are, of course, ongoing efforts and evolving technology that may change how court reporting is done. So far, these mostly involve computer and software innovations.

Generally, the result of court reporting is a transcript of the words spoken at the proceeding — mostly now delivered in e-format of some sort. However, for court proceedings and for trials, in particular, there is still a demand for the nearly immediate ability to “read back” portions of the transcript while the proceedings are ongoing. This is possible with truly excellent court reporters with great experience.

When are court reporters needed?

In general, court reporters are needed in any proceeding where a record is needed or desired. Mostly, courts do not provide a court reporter or any ability to provide a transcript. In this regard, the major exception is federal court proceedings. Federal courts supply transcriptions of hearing, whereas most State courts do not. Court reporting is also allowed and used in some arbitration proceedings.

The other main task of court reporters involves litigation discovery. In particular, assistance with oral discovery pursuant to State and federal rules with respect to discovery and evidence depositions. In depositions, the court reporter’s job is, again, to capture every spoken word and, at some point, provide a transcript of the questions and the answers. Even if the deposition is being video-recorded, mostly, a court reporter is still engaged in the process of steno-typing. This is because, during a deposition, there is still the potential need for a real-time “read back” of some small portion of the transcript.

Do Court Reporters mark exhibits?

In some jurisdictions, another valuable service provided by a court reporter is marking and keeping track of documentary exhibits used with the witness. Exhibits are marked in various ways, usually with stickers, with hand-written notations, or in some other manner. Often, the court reporter is asked to keep the originals for inclusion/binding with the deposition transcript. This can be very helpful for lawyers since even the most organized attorneys might occasionally lose track of the exhibit numbers. This is very true when the number of exhibits is high, and both sets of counsel are using exhibits. Note that in some trial settings where no court reporting is provided by the court, the court reporter can be asked to keep track of trial exhibits. However, often, the trial judge will ask the court’s clerk to handle that task.

Contact Elizabeth Gallo Court Reporting Today

 For more information, call the experienced court reporters at Elizabeth Gallo Court Reporting. We follow the best practices in order to provide excellent litigation support to our customers. Contact us today to learn about our services and how we can help you.

How Does a Court Reporter Certify a Transcript?

Posted on July 6, 2023 in: Certified Georgia Court Reporters, Court Reporters, Court Reporting, Depositions, Process Servers, Remote Court Court Reporters, Remote Court Reporting, Remote Depo, Remote Deposition, Remote Videographer, Remote Videotaped Deposition|Comments Off on How Does a Court Reporter Certify a Transcript?

What is a certified transcript?

When a court reporter prepares a written transcript of a hearing or an oral deposition, the transcript is certified by the court reporter. A transcript certification is a written statement or certification, typically appended to the back of the transcript, wherein the court reporter attests that the transcript represents a true and accurate transcription of the oral statements made at the hearing or deposition.

What is the purpose of certification?

Among other things, the purpose of court reporting is to accurately and completely capture the words spoken at a hearing or deposition and then reduce those words to a transcript. A Certification of a transcript is a method by which the court reporter, often called a stenographer, states that they have honored the obligation to capture the words spoken and to reduce those words to a transcript. A transcript certification also contains other statements required by the laws of various States.

In terms of accuracy, a sample certification might read as follows:

“IT IS FURTHER CERTIFIED; that this testimony was reported by me in the stenotype reporting method; was prepared and transcribed by me or under my personal direction and supervision; and is a true, correct, and complete transcription to the best of my ability and understanding.”

In terms of other matters required by law, a couple of sample certification statements might read like these:

“IT IS FURTHER CERTIFIED that I have no actual knowledge of a prohibited employment or contractual relationship, director or indirect, between myself and/or my court reporting firm and any party to this litigation matter, or with any counsel for the parties herein.

IT IS FURTHER CERTIFIED that I am not of counsel, not related by family or otherwise to counsel or to the parties herein, nor am I otherwise interested in the outcome of this matter.”

Under the laws of most states, to be eligible to offer court reporting services in any given case or proceeding, the court reporters must be disinterested in the matter. That means having no contractual or monetary interest in the matter (other than receiving payment for court reporting and transcription services) nor a personal or family relationship with any of the parties or their lawyers. Thus, the purpose of the partial Certification written above is to certify the court reporter’s disinterestedness.

Another common component of a court reporter’s certification is a statement that the transcript has been prepared according to standards promulgated by the state and by Court Reporting Licensing Boards.

What does a transcript certify?

To summarize, then, a court reporting transcript certification will generally certify the following:

  • That the transcription is true, accurate, and complete;
  • The hearing was reported through stenographic, short-hand, or other methods;
  • That the transcription was transcribed by the court reporter or under their supervision;
  • That the transcript complies with state and private court reporting standards;
  • That the court reporter has no interest in the matter, financially, contractually, or by family relationship;
  • Other matters depending on state and local court reporting Rules.

 

Contact Elizabeth Gallo Court Reporting Today

For more information, call the experienced court reporters at Elizabeth Gallo Court Reporting. We follow the best practices in order to provide excellent litigation support to our customers. Contact us today to learn about our services and how we can help you.

Which Type of Court Reporting Do I Need?

Posted on June 14, 2023 in: Certified Georgia Court Reporters, Court Reporters, Court Reporting, Depositions, Remote Court Court Reporters, Remote Court Reporting, Remote Depo, Remote Deposition|Comments Off on Which Type of Court Reporting Do I Need?

There are several types — methods — of court reporting. Which type you need depends on several factors. Probably the two key factors are the nature of the proceeding involved and the use to which the transcript/video will be put. For example, you may need a court reporter for a judicial hearing. Under such circumstances, a video recording may be prohibited by local rules and/or the court’s preferences and may be unwieldy in practice. As another example, you may need to have a real-time transcript that can be quickly “read back” during the proceedings. Under those circumstances, you need a court reporting method that creates an ongoing live transcript. Not all methods of court reporting are designed to produce an ongoing live transcript.

Other factors that impact the decision about which type of court reporting is best include:

  • The ease of retrieval
  • Ease of use for the lawyers involved
  • Ease of presentation to judges, arbitrators, jurors, and others
  • Court rules and rules of other types of proceedings
  • Need for a written transcript and when is the written transcript needed
  • Planned storage method
  • Expected length of storage
  • Cost
  • Client preferences
  • And other factors

Often, more than one type of transcript is desired, and those choices have to be made in advance. For example, if you think you will need a video transcript, that decision must be made in advance since a written transcript cannot be converted into a video transcript. If there is a need for a visual presentation of a written transcript, then persons must be chosen to read the transcript, and this has obvious disadvantages. By contrast, a video can be translated into a written transcript.

In terms of output, written and visual are the two options. However, as noted, there are several options with respect to how the testimony/proceedings are recorded. These include:

  • Video recording — with various types of video recording devices; typically, a written transcript is generated after the fact from the recording; generally automatically created when virtual or remote testimony or proceedings are involved
  • Stenography — the most common method of court reporting, the best process for creating an ongoing live transcript that can be “read back” if needed during the proceedings; the process involves a court reporter using a steno machine to record the proceedings in real-time; the steno keystrokes can be read by the stenographer; later, keystrokes can be converted into text transcript often with the use of a computer; generally, a voice recording device is also used for quality control and accuracy
  • Voice recording — has become somewhat uncommon; no steno machine is used; the voice recording is converted to readable text after-the-fact; various types of audio recording equipment are used
  • Computer voice writing — use of computer speech recognition software to convert audio into text in real-time

 Contact Elizabeth Gallo Court Reporting Today

 For more information, call the experienced court reporters at Elizabeth Gallo Court Reporting. We follow the best practices in order to provide excellent litigation support to our customers. Contact us today to learn about our services and how we can help you.

Stenographic annotations court reporting

 

Some Pros and Cons of Video Depositions

Posted on May 31, 2023 in: Certified Georgia Court Reporters, Court Reporters, Court Reporting, Depositions, Legal Videography, Remote Court Court Reporters, Remote Court Reporting, Remote Depo, Remote Deposition, Remote Videographer, Remote Videotaped Deposition, Videographer, Videography|Comments Off on Some Pros and Cons of Video Depositions

It is not quite standard practice, but video depositions are becoming increasingly common even if the lawyers involved do not expect to use the video at trial. Of course, there are times when a video deposition is needed, such as when a witness is infirm, might be close to death, is overseas, or will be unavailable for live testimony at trial. These circumstances will, by rule, be designated as evidence depositions and will be taken pursuant to those rules.

Other than evidence depositions, when considering Noticing a discovery deposition via video, there are some advantages and disadvantages to consider. Note that cost is not too much of a factor since having a deposition videotaped does not increase the cost substantially. Further, a written transcript is almost always needed, so a video discovery deposition does not necessarily save the costs of transcription.

The disadvantages involve a number of issues. First, setup and arrangement can be more complicated. This involves questions of an appropriate visual setting. These include an appropriate chair and proper background for the witness, correct and effective lighting, placement of counsel, framing, and other visual factors. Second, witness preparation can require extra resources for the attorneys presenting the witness. In effect, the preparation is more akin to preparing a witness for trial. This includes requiring the deponent to wear formal clothing, accessories, hair, and makeup with an “eye” toward how the video would appear to a judge or jury. Preparing the witness with respect to body language and other visual clues is also important.

Third, the same preparation is needed for the lawyers who will be present in the video (or, alternatively, it should be agreed that only the witness will appear on camera). Fourth, lawyer preparation is needed to enhance question “flow.” In a non-video deposition, if a lawyer takes 10 seconds to think of the proper follow-up question, that 10 seconds does not appear in the written transcript. In a video deposition, however, that time gap can be jarring and would potentially require some editing if the video were presented to a jury.

Those disadvantages being listed, there are a great number of advantages to video depositions. These include:

  • Taking the visual “measure” of a witness — lawyers know that some witnesses present better than others in a courtroom; issues like posture, mannerisms, visual clues of truthfulness, etc.; video depositions can capture those visual measures;
  • Visual measures are available for lawyers new to the case — it is not uncommon for one set of lawyers to “work up” a case and, later, for a set of trial lawyers to take over; video depositions allow new lawyers of the case to make their own assessments of the witnesses; further, that measure is preserved even if the trial occurs years later;
  • If used at trial, a video deposition is more useful to a jury than having a written deposition read to them (and more interesting) — the jury can see the visual clues that help their judgment with respect to credibility;
  • Video tends to help keep witnesses and counsel well-behaved during the deposition — lawyers tend to fight less on camera;
  • Conversely, the video shows “bad” behavior in a deposition — such as anger and bullying tones — in a way that cannot be shown on paper;
  • Video depositions tend to be quicker — this is partly because the lawyers involved tend to be more prepared and tend to do less “fishing”.

 

Contact Elizabeth Gallo Court Reporting Today

 For more information, call the experienced court reporters at Elizabeth Gallo Court Reporting. We follow the best practices in order to provide excellent litigation support to our customers. Contact us today to learn about our services and how we can help you.

Videography camera on tripod

 

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