Most of us think of court reporter as a quiet person witnessing testimony. In reality, professional court reporter services include keeping of the official record, and much more. A professional court reporter’s skill and knowledge of technology can help you win or lose a case. All court reporters do not have the same skill sets, and the same resources. A court reporter’s potential to influence a decision becomes evident if he has a business relationship with the opposition. This article is a quick guide about services of professional court reporter.
Types of Court Reporters
In the United States, there are mainly two types of court reporting. Those court reporters who work for the courts and judges, are known as official court reporters. In the past, there was only this type of reporters. However, with an increase in demand to provide reporting services outside the courtroom, another type of court reporter has emerged. They are known as independent court reporters.
Traditionally, the official court reporter used to be a government employee. However, these days majority jurisdictions seek services of independent court reporting firms for reporters in courts. Hiring independent reporters on a contract basis helps reduce expenses.
An independent court reporter can be a sole reporter, or can be affiliated with a reporting firm.
Types of Court Reporting
Although the oldest form of court reporting is steno-graphing, that still persists in some parts of the United States, but there are other methods too. Mask reporting is practiced wearing a mask, and repeating what is being heard. Mask reporters identify individual speakers for making transcriptions of recorded audio. In some jurisdictions “tape” recorder is used for making tapes of the proceedings, for exact interpretation.
Qualifications and Certifications
The National Court Reporters Association (NCRA) requires a court reporter to first attain Registered Professional Reporter (RPR) Certification, and then pass the exam of Registered Merit Reporter (RMR) after fulfilling its requirements.
Afterwards, reporters can obtain even higher levels of certifications such as Registered Diplomat Reporter (RDR), Certified Real-time Reporter (CRR), Certified Manager of Reporting Services (CMRS), Certified Legal Video Specialist (CLVS), etc.
Court reporters, these days, must have considerable educational background and skill sets to successfully report court proceedings. Some high-level professional court reporters are required to have a command on understanding of language, grammar, and the terminologies used during litigation. However, a general expectation from a court reporter is that he/she must understand specific technical terminologies of doctors, lawyers and engineers so that the public can understand them.
Other than this, the reporter must possess knowledge of technology, e.g. recording, archiving, and retrieval of the record, and its impacts within the litigation process.
Technology Concerns
Technological concerns are probably the most important need for court reporting firms to increase their efficiency and performance. Savvy technology allows the court reporting entities to help clients in improving quality and controlling costs.
Court reporting firm’s collaboration with LiveNote allow court reporters to provide their clients better services.
A professional court reporter can help you win your case with up-to-date knowledge of technology applications, and by having access to all resources which a lawyer may need during the litigation process. Lawyer and other legal professionals can rely on independent court reporter for finding the best technologies available, and using them in various aspects of the litigation process.
Regulation and Costs
The practice of court reporting varies considerably from state to state. Court reporters are officers of the court while in depositions and are regulated at the state level. The charges for court reporting services also vary based on their skills and certifications.
The common cost calculating practice is “page rate“, in which the cost of the reporter’s services is based on the value for each page of the resulting transcript.
Contracted Services
Due to large volumes of litigation services required by large corporations and insurance companies, the client party prefers to have contractual professional court reporting services. These contracts benefit both parties; discounted rates for the clients and large volumes of business for the court reporters. However, due to raising concerns for ‘contract based court reporting’, the momentum for anti-contracting initiative is increasing. Currently, more than 20 states have introduced legislative action of some sort to ban contracts between client party and court reporters.
Conclusion
A professional court reporter services could be a significant resource for your law firm, not only as the record-keeper, but for his efforts throughout a litigation process. However, all court reporters are not the same when it comes to their competence and their ability to apply knowledge/resources. Some lawyers and their legal support staff rely on third-party organizations to assure that quality standards are met and exceeded. Professional Reporting Services offers a one-stop solution for court reporting in Northern California. Other than court Reporter services in Walnut Creek California, we also provide complimentary conference rooms services in Walnut Creek Office.
If you need experienced Court Reporter to take your next deposition in Walnut Creek, California or any of the cities listed below, please contact our office.
