What is
Court Reporting?
©
COPYRIGHT HUSEBY, INC. 2008
Some people
come visit us here at Huseby because they are looking for a
change in career. Their motivation might be a new
challenge, a bigger salary, or a variety of other reasons.
As they consider their options they often come across the
growing field of court reporting and wonder just what
court reporters
do.
Most people
think of what they see in the movies – someone sitting in an
obscure corner clicking away on a tiny typewriter, occasionally
reading something back at a dramatic moment. This is only
the most basic example of what the profession does; there is
much more to this exciting career.
Job
Levels In A Court Reporting Career
Hay
Management Consultants did a study of
court reporting
services in the 1990s, comparing the profession to other
careers such as nursing and accounting. They defined four
levels of increasing responsibility:
·
Entry-Level:
takes notes and turns them into transcripts, working under
supervision
·
Skilled:
creates transcription of complex cases in real time, working
unsupervised
·
Experienced:
assists the court in organizing and using information
·
Seasoned:
uses years of on-the-job experience to offer advices to court
officials including judges
It’s clear
that there is more to the profession than taking dictation.
Highly experienced court reporters are respected court officials
with skills and knowledge that the lawyers and the judge may not
have.
Court
Reporters Find Jobs In Private Industry
Over the
years, Huseby has seen an increasing demand for court reporting
outside the courtroom.
Certified
court reporters act as professional witnesses during any
discussion, particularly ones with strong opinions on either
side. Principals in a negotiation are biased in their
memory and interpretation of events, but the reporter is a
disinterested observer who creates impartial documentation.
Court
reporters at Huseby are used in all levels of the corporate and
government world to create official records of proceedings from
training seminars to sales meetings. There are increasing
opportunities to provide real-time captioning for live
television broadcasts.
Technology
Increases Demand And Opportunities
It might
seem surprising but technology has never endangered the
profession of court reporting. Although we have seen the
profession change, fast and impartial transcription is more in
demand than ever.
Consider
the effect that television had. The need for closed
captioning services created a huge demand for fast and accurate
transcription and a whole new career path for court reporters.
The Internet is having a similar effect because of streaming
text, which allows people from all over the world to “attend”
meetings in real time even if they lack the technology for a
live video feed.
Software
helps reporters translate and proofread their notes to produce
transcripts more quickly. Wireless and Internet
technologies allow court reporters to work remotely, allowing
many to work from their homes.
This is a
growing field in all parts of the nation from California to
Maine to Florida.
Court reporting is and always will be a key part of our
communication, commercial, and legal systems.
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