9 Court Reporting Myths That Need To Be Busted
There are a lot of myths about the Court Reporting profession, and also many facts that are hidden from the public’s general knowledge.
Court reporters provide the important service of a real-time record of depositions, hearings, and trials. Using various technologies, they compile a written, verbatim record of every word that is said during a legal proceeding.
The number of misconceptions about court reporters is endless. Every year you can hear something new. I've decided to bust those myths one by one.
Court Reporting Myth #1: The Court Reporter's only need is to be a fast typist.
Stenography involves specialized equipment to take shorthand. As a matter of fact, to be able to capture every word that's said, court reporters need to be very organized. While it’s true that court reporters need to be able to record conversations in real-time, they are not typing.
Court Reporting Myth #2: Court reporters are dedicated to working in courtrooms only.
The truth is some court reporters do work in courtrooms on a daily basis. However, the majority of court reporters work in different verticals every day. The venues they cover are very diversified: Courtrooms, Law Firms, Classrooms, Homes, Live Events, Stadiums, International Hotels, and the list goes on...
Court Reporting Myth #3: Court reporting is repetitive and boring.
As an independent contractor, court reporters work wherever and whenever they choose. Some travel the world. So there's nothing boring about this work. On top of that, they work with a wide diversity of people every day. Other Court Reporters bring a specialization to their role, which helps them to select areas to work that they are interested in.
Court Reporting Myth #4: Court Reporters are a little bit more than secretaries.
To capture a word in real-time means writing stenographic shorthand as fast people talk. This is not a normal stenographic task. The fact is humans, speak at a rate of 225 words per minute. The career of a Court Reporter has long-term job stability, and the opportunity to earn a six-figure income. You can't see secretaries make a six-figure income.
Court Reporting Myth #5: Court reporters only have jobs in the legal field.
The fact is, depositions and court proceedings require for Court Reporters. However, I'm surprised to know they take the record on many different fields: Sports, Political Events, Webinars, Seminars, Community Meetings and more. Actually, Any event with live speakers.
Court Reporting Myth #6: Court reporting profession is only filled by women.
Most people have seen court reporters in television shows or as a character in movies. So, many assume that court reporting is a field possessed by women. That's not true. The truth is, the court reporting profession is for men and women. As a matter of fact, the National Court Reporters Association statistics for 2016 list at least 12% of its 16,000 members as male.
Court Reporting Myth #7: There are more than enough court reporters.
The truth is that there is a court reporter shortage happening right now and it's only getting worse. Not only is there an increased demand in the legal field, but in non-legal fields. This shortage was predicted by Ducker Worldwide and the NCRA. As it stands right now, the reporter demand exceeds supply by almost 5,500.
On top of that, At the 2018 National Court Reporter’s Association Annual Convention, the CEO of a national court reporting agency reported that the agency cannot cover 200 jobs each month. Myth busted.
Court Reporting Myth #8: Technology can replace Court Reporters.
Technology has transformed to reach success and has taken the better of almost every industry. Though this is also the case with the legal industry, court reporting cannot be replaced, only improved. The court reporting services these days include Video Conferencing, Deposition Live Streaming, Artificial Intelligence and Audio Transcriptions.
Court Reporting Myth #9: Electronic court reporting is not a trustworthy way to take down the record.
Electronic court reporters record the audio of the proceeding. However, they also take very detailed notes called annotations. In fact, annotation notes include proper names, speaker designation, timestamps, spellings, and non-verbal actions. Moreover, it's important to state that courthouses and firms across the country have been successfully utilizing electronic court reporting for many years.
(BONUS) Court Reporting Myth: Artificial Intelligence will take all the Court Reporters jobs.
AI transcription has the potential to rescue the industry from their chronic backlogs by filling in the gaps. When applied to Adaptive Automated Speech Recognition (ASR) technology, AI improves speech-to-text engines to the point that they can transcribe jargon-heavy legal proceedings accurately.
Companies are now reaching across toad in the use of AI, which we define as systems that extend human capability by sensing, comprehending, acting and learning.
Artificial intelligence can be deployed to automate certain functions, the technology's greater power is in complementing and augmenting human capabilities.
AI and machine learning technology have the potential to achieve faster transcription turnaround and a high level of accuracy for court reporters, as well as assist with other elements of a court proceeding.
Resource:
https://www.maccormac.edu/blog/court-reporting-myths
https://depointernational.com/blogs/mythbusting-court-reporting/
https://verbit.ai/will-ai-solutions-replace-stenographers/
https://courtreportersaz.com/2017/03/court-reporter-facts-myths/
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