Who Do Court Reporters Work For?

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Court Reporter Washington DC

Are you wondering where to find a great court reporter in Washington D.C.? Maybe you are wondering, “Who do court reporters work for?” The answer varies between independent reporters, and government employee reporters. Court reporters mostly work for government officials in government courtrooms, although many also work freelance throughout the country. At Capital Reporting Company, we have thousands of court reporters located all over the world, dedicated to our team, that are well versed in all court proceedings. Not only do we have professional court reporters in Washington D.C. ready 24/7, we offer videoconference rooms in Washington D.C., legal translation in Washington D.C., and deposition services in Washington D.C. All of our services are available 24/7, all over the world via our Capital Reporting Company Portal, which allows our clients access anything and anyone involved in their cases no matter where they are. If you need a court reporter in Washington D.C., choosing one from Capital Reporting Company won’t be a disappointment, as we were voted the Best Overall Providers of Court Reporters and Deposition Services in the National Law Journal/Legal Times by our clients.

We only hire the best, meaning any court reporter in Washington D.C. you hire from Capital Reporting Company will get the job done right, the first time. We have over 3,500 court reporters all over the world, making Capital Reporting Company a leader in comprehensive litigation support. All of our court reporters can type 225 words a minute, with 95% accuracy or more, using the most advanced technology to enhance their proficiency.  Many lawyers who need a court reporter in Washington D.C., also need services such as videoconference rooms in Washington D.C., legal translation service in Washington D.C., and other deposition services in Washington D.C.  All of these services make it easier and more efficient for our legal clients to do their jobs, and make sure their information is correct and available to their clients. Capital Reporting Company knows how stressful it can be to keep track of everything, and to make sure your court proceedings are properly managed and documented. Let a court reporter in Washington D.C. from our services help you stay on track, and keep your clients and cases organized and accounted for.

Who Do Court Reporters Work For?

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Are you wondering where to find a great court reporter in Washington D.C.? Maybe you are wondering, “Who do court reporters work for?” The answer varies between independent reporters, and government employee reporters. Court reporters mostly work for government officials in government courtrooms, although many also work freelance throughout the country. At Capital Reporting Company, we have thousands of court reporters located all over the world, dedicated to our team, that are well versed in all court proceedings. Not only do we have professional court reporters in Washington D.C. ready 24/7, we offer videoconference rooms in Washington D.C., legal translation in Washington D.C., and deposition services in Washington D.C. All of our services are available 24/7, all over the world via our Capital Reporting Company Portal, which allows our clients access anything and anyone involved in their cases no matter where they are. If you need a court reporter in Washington D.C., choosing one from Capital Reporting Company won’t be a disappointment, as we were voted the Best Overall Providers of Court Reporters and Deposition Services in the National Law Journal/Legal Times by our clients.

We only hire the best, meaning any court reporter in Washington D.C. you hire from Capital Reporting Company will get the job done right, the first time. We have over 3,500 court reporters all over the world, making Capital Reporting Company a leader in comprehensive litigation support. All of our court reporters can type 225 words a minute, with 95% accuracy or more, using the most advanced technology to enhance their proficiency.  Many lawyers who need a court reporter in Washington D.C., also need services such as videoconference rooms in Washington D.C., legal translation service in Washington D.C., and other deposition services in Washington D.C.  All of these services make it easier and more efficient for our legal clients to do their jobs, and make sure their information is correct and available to their clients. Capital Reporting Company knows how stressful it can be to keep track of everything, and to make sure your court proceedings are properly managed and documented. Let a court reporter in Washington D.C. from our services help you stay on track, and keep your clients and cases organized and accounted for.

Capital is now a subsidiary of Veritext Legal Solutions

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Exciting news! Capital is now a subsidiary of Veritext Legal Solutions, the national leader in court reporting and deposition services.

What this means:

  • Capital can now bring many new and improved services to you including online scheduling, remote deposition technology (including exhibit and transcript annotation), unique exhibit technology and much much more.
  • Capital can now better serve you across the U.S., providing you with consistent and reliable service anytime and anywhere.
  • For existing clients, Capital vetted reporters will continue to take your depositions…you will have the same quality reporters covering your depositions that you’ve always had.
  • In a nutshell, nothing is really changing except the fact that Capital now has improved resources to better serve our clients!

Capital and Veritext share a commitment to quality, comprehensive court reporting and deposition services across the nation. This is truly a perfect match for our court reporting company and its clients. We are very excited to be a part of the Veritext team. As always, if you have any questions about your deposition services, you may reach out to Capital via phone or web.

Court Reporting Meets The Film Industry: News from our San Francisco Court Reporting Company

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With decades of experience in the court reporting industry, our San Francisco court reporting company is very excited to hear about an upcoming film, For the Record.This documentary about court reporting has had three packed screenings at the South by Southwest festival, and many other private screenings around the country.

Director and producer Marc Greenberg has decades of experience in the film and court reporting industry, and is marrying his two passions, drawing attention to our fascinating but often unrecognized profession. The premise of For the Record is simple: the film follows three competitors attempting to break the Guinness World Record for fastest court reporter. A qualified court reporter– like our court reporters in San Francisco— is required to write at a rate of 225 words per minute. However, these “steno-lebrities” (a nickname given to renowned court reporters) are aiming to transcribe 400 words in a single minute. Regular conversational speech averages 160 words per minute, so the reporters competing in this event must take their dictation from a sped-up voice recording.

In a recent South by Southwest interview, Greenberg and two of his documentary subjects, Richard and Michael Scire, described what makes court reporting such a fascinating profession. For instance, Greenberg notes that during a State of the Union address, the court reporter is the person sitting closest to the president, albeit very quietly. “It’s such an important profession,” Greenberg says. “And yet no one knows about it.” We at Capital Reporting Company may disagree with that statement, seeing as we serve over 10,000 clients around the world!

The Scires, twin brothers and court reporters in Florida, discuss the many interesting facets of the court reporting industry. Court reporters act as a sort of fly on the proverbial wall, and every professional is, at some point, witness to some court room or deposition drama. However, as the Scire twins explain, a good court reporter is discreet. “It is public record. But it is not our record to make public.” Court reporters spend much of their days around high-stakes, high emotion situations, and there are times when the job can be emotionally difficult. For the Record appears to focus on the human element behind the machines. This is understandable, as it may be decades or even longer before people are removed from the court reporting process.

As long as court reporters are needed, there will be records to break and more for us to learn. Our court reporters in San Francisco are always looking for new insights into our profession, and we certainly cannot wait to see what this documentary has to show us!

Court Reporting Meets The Film Industry

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Court Reporting Meets The Film Industry: News from our San Francisco Court Reporting Company

With decades of experience in the court reporting industry, our San Francisco court reporting company is very excited to hear about an upcoming film, For the Record.This documentary about court reporting has had three packed screenings at the South by Southwest festival, and many other private screenings around the country.

Director and producer Marc Greenberg has decades of experience in the film and court reporting industry, and is marrying his two passions, drawing attention to our fascinating but often unrecognized profession. The premise of For the Record is simple: the film follows three competitors attempting to break the Guinness World Record for fastest court reporter. A qualified court reporter– like our court reporters in San Francisco— is required to write at a rate of 225 words per minute. However, these “steno-lebrities” (a nickname given to renowned court reporters) are aiming to transcribe 400 words in a single minute. Regular conversational speech averages 160 words per minute, so the reporters competing in this event must take their dictation from a sped-up voice recording.

In a recent South by Southwest interview, Greenberg and two of his documentary subjects, Richard and Michael Scire, described what makes court reporting such a fascinating profession. For instance, Greenberg notes that during a State of the Union address, the court reporter is the person sitting closest to the president, albeit very quietly. “It’s such an important profession,” Greenberg says. “And yet no one knows about it.” We at Capital Reporting Company may disagree with that statement, seeing as we serve over 10,000 clients around the world!

The Scires, twin brothers and court reporters in Florida, discuss the many interesting facets of the court reporting industry. Court reporters act as a sort of fly on the proverbial wall, and every professional is, at some point, witness to some court room or deposition drama. However, as the Scire twins explain, a good court reporter is discreet. “It is public record. But it is not our record to make public.” Court reporters spend much of their days around high-stakes, high emotion situations, and there are times when the job can be emotionally difficult. For the Record appears to focus on the human element behind the machines. This is understandable, as it may be decades or even longer before people are removed from the court reporting process.

As long as court reporters are needed, there will be records to break and more for us to learn. Our court reporters in San Francisco are always looking for new insights into our profession, and we certainly cannot wait to see what this documentary has to show us!

How Accurate Should A Court Transcript Be?

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Expert Court Reporting: Accuracy

We’ve talked at length about what it takes to become a top court reporter. While Capital Reporting Company offers high quality, comprehensive court reporting services across the board, there are two foundational qualities that we always maintain: speed and accuracy. You may have read on previous blog posts that our court reporters transcribe a minimum of 225 words per minute. This is the requirement set forth by the National Court Reporting Association. What’s more is that Capital Reporting Company’s court reporters transcribe several-hundred page documents on a regular basis. When we type so much so quickly, how can you be sure that the work is precise?

The answer is the NCRA, which requires that a court reporter transcribe the minimum 225 words per minute, with at least 95% accuracy. This is the basic requirement to become a court reporter, and, as one of the Best Overall Providers of Court Reporting & Deposition Services, Capital Reporting Company, goes above and beyond the basic requirements. In the case of a verbatim transcription–we thoroughly review our transcripts before being certified, filed with the court, and forwarded to our clients. All of our work is as close to 100% accurate as possible.

At Capital Reporting Company, we understand the importance of getting a transcript right.  As the NCRA outlines, we assign court reporters and transcriptionists tasks based on their levels of ability. The most complex depositions will be placed in the most capable hands. We know it is not uncommon in the audio transcription world for a government agency or attorney to receive a transcript that does not match the audio, forcing the client to demand a transcript re-write. This is never the case at Capital, where our high standards ensure your work is handled by only the most capable professionals.

The guidelines for court reporting in Chicago may differ from those of San Francisco and New York, but Capital Reporting Company maintains its high standards across the nation and the globe. Our commitment to accuracy is just one of the many reasons that over 10,000 clients look to us to fulfill their court reporting and deposition needs.

March Madness Puts Court Reporting To The Test

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Can a California court reporter take on an NCAA athlete? The Wisconsin Badgers seem to think so. “Cattywampus, onomatopoeia, and antidisestablishmentarianism” are three of the most convoluted words spoken so far during NCAA March Madness. They came from Wisconsin Badgers player Nigel Hayes, in an attempt to test the interview transcriber’s skills. At Capital Reporting Company, we know that any court reporter worth her salt can transcribe them, as occurred during the NCAA press conference. The interview stenographer, known on Twitter as @Saintsswimmom, transcribed the sesquipedalian words without missing a beat, amazing the college basketball team and their coach. Our court reporters in San Francisco, Chicago, and Washington DC, accomplish similar feats every day, transcribing over 225 words per minute with expert skill and cutting edge technology.

How do court reporters type words that many of us have never even heard before? By relying on our hearing rather than spelling memorization. As was demonstrated to the Wisconsin Badgers that night, a stenographer uses a special machine called a stenotype, which transcribes words according to phonemes (sounds) rather than letters. For example, there are three phonemes in the word “apple,” A-P-L. A qualified stenographer, like our San Francisco court reporters, can transcribe these three sounds by simultaneously pressing a combination of keys. When employed by a trained professional, this process is much faster than individually typing the five letters “a-p-p-l-e”. The same procedure goes for even longer, stranger words such as “antidisestablishmentarianism.”

Each court reporter has a personal dictionary on his or her computer, which gleans new and frequently used words from each transcript. This allows the reporter to save and retrieve the terms, transcribing them faster each time they are repeated. This is particularly helpful in depositions that contain expert witness testimony, where a witness may use medical jargon or other unusual phrases. A court reporter must be ready to transcribe this terminology, so that your deposition can run smoothly, and testimony can be accurately taken, without interruption.

Nigel Hayes and his teammates were very impressed with the court reporter’s level of skill and technique. When asked why he opened his interview with such strange words, Hayes responded, “Well, the wonderful lady over there, I think her title is stenographer, yes, OK. And she does an amazing job of typing words. Sometimes if words are not in her dictionary, maybe if I say ‘soliloquy’ right now, she may have to work a little harder to type the word, or ‘quandary’, or ‘zephyr’, ‘xylophone’, things like that, that make her job really interesting.” (You can watch Hayes and his teammates testing out the stenotype on Twitter.)

For the record, the word “cattywampus” is an adjective or adverb meaning “askew” or “awry.” For example, “If you don’t want your deposition to go cattywampus, schedule a court reporter from the leading court reporting services provider.” Since 2012, Capital has been consistently voted among the Best Overall Providers of Court Reporting and Deposition Services in the National Law Journal/ Legal Times. Call us today to schedule your deposition. We will meet your March Madness challenge with dedicated service.

What Is A Verbatim Transcript?

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Our court reporting company is proud to offer many different kinds of transcription and deposition services, among them are verbatim transcripts. What is a verbatim transcript? You probably know the word, verbatim, and its meaning “word for word.” And if you guess that a verbatim transcript means that each and every word is transcribed, you would be right. Did you know, however, that there are different kinds of verbatim transcripts?: Intelligent Verbatim, which is word for word, and True Verbatim, which is, essentially, sound for sound.

True Verbatim

Imagine an interviewer asking a witness, “Were you aware, of the defendant’s whereabouts on the night in question?” The witness hesitates, perhaps stutters or laughs nervously before answering, “Ummm…no. Not at the time.” An intelligent verbatim transcript (which we will discuss below), may simply read “No. Not at the time.” A straightforward answer, but a true verbatim transcription will capture every sound and nuance in the witness’s answer. This includes fillers, pauses, and ambient noise. It will read something like the following:

Interviewer: Were you aware of the defendant’s whereabouts on the night in question?

Interviewee: [Silence] um…no. [Pause]…not at the time.

A true verbatim transcript can be essential in assessing a witness’s credibility, as those hesitations, spelled out on the page, may indicate a witness’s lying or uncertainty, and determine how the litigants move forward. True verbatim transcriptions may be most useful in situations where the way in which something is said is equally important to what is said. Such transcripts are necessary in commercial cases, intellectual property cases, and even car accident cases.

Intelligent Verbatim

There are other instances, of course, where ambient noises, filler words and nonverbal sounds can be distracting. In this case, our court reporters and transcriptionists are happy to provide Intelligent verbatim, or simply verbatim, transcripts.This is an excellent practice for bloggers, journalists, and others who may need an exact quote but do not need the superfluous, minute details. Intelligent verbatim, or simply verbatim transcription, is helpful when you need a clean quote for a succinct story or report.

Whichever form of transcription you choose, Capital Reporting Company is proud to offer a host of court reporting services. We are a comprehensive court reporting and deposition company, proud to serve you locally, nationally, and internationally. Whatever your transcription needs, entrust your verbatim and true verbatim transcripts to Capital Reporting Company. Schedule a deposition or other service with us today.

The ILCRA & our Chicago Court Reporters

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The ILCRA Certification & Chicago Court Reporting Companies

When it comes to our Chicago court reporters, Capital Reporting Company aims for the highest standards. With that in mind, we look to governing bodies like the Illinois Court Reporters Association (ILCRA), to help us recruit the high quality court reporters for your Chicago depositions.

What is ILCRA?

ILCRA is a board made up of 17 committees,which oversees the standards of court reporting and the relations between shorthand reporter agencies– like our Chicago court reporting company– and consumers.

Why do we have ILCRA?

Like our court reporters in San Francisco and around the US, our Chicago court reporters are expected to undergo rigorous training and pass a statewide certification exam, the Certified Shorthand Reporter exam, before obtaining certification. The Illinois Court Reporters Association is administers these exams in an effort to achieve its mission of:

  • Maintaining high standards in verbatim shorthand reporting
  • Providing Illinois court reporters with opportunities for continuing education and technological growth.
  • Promoting a mutually beneficial relationship between the verbatim shorthand reporting profession and its clientele.

When were they established?

Regulations for shorthand reporters were initially established in in Illinois in 1967. In 1978, ILCRA was established with then-president Raymond K. Richter at the helm. And in 1984, the Illinois Certified Shorthand Reporters Act came into effect, reinforcing the standards that uphold our profession today.

How do they serve their members?

ILCRA has many functions in the field of court reporting, including, but not limited to:

  • Maintaining reporters’ rights to certification
  • Administering certification examinations and publicizing exam dates through their newsletter.
  • Keeping abreast of legislation, and promoting and campaigns for legislation in the interest of professionals in the court reporting, transcription, and deposition fields.
  • Hosting conferences and continuing education seminars.
  • Publishing an online newsletter, Ad Infinitum, to inform members of new developments in the field.
  • Serving as an affiliate to the National Court Reporters Association.
  • Offering membership discounts to conferences.
  • Administering awards for students, educators and the winner of the annual speed contest.
  • Providing online information regarding regulations.
  • Offering an online mentoring program for students
  • Promoting student recruitment
  • Providing members with CART brochures, free of charge
  • Sending representatives to conferences and training conventions

There are many more functions of  ILCRA, and it is clear from the above list that they are instrumental in helping with the professional life of court reporters in Chicagoand throughout the state of Illinois.Like the ILCRA, Capital Reporting Company aims to ensure that our clients receive high quality work from us in Illinois and across the globe, To enlist our court reporting services or learn more about the other ways we can assist you with your court reporting needs, contact Capital Reporting Company today.

Court Reporters Board of California

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Court Reporters Board of California

There are a lot of factors that aid Capital Reporting Company in providing quality court reporting and deposition services in San Francisco, CA. Not the least of these is the governing board that allows our court reporters in San Francisco CA– and all over the state of California– to practice. Founded in 1951,this board, known as the Court Reporters Board of California, authorizes court reporting school curricula and administers qualifying exams. Its aim is to protect clients and ensure that they receive quality, accurate, court reporting and deposition services in California.

What does the Court Reporters Board of California do?

Accurate court transcripts are instrumental to a fair and efficient judicial process. The Court Reporters Board of California assures that our San Francisco CA court reporters adhere to these standards in the following ways:

  • Licensing California’s Certified Shorthand Reporters (CSR’s), better known as court reporters.
  • Overseeing California’s court reporter schools through the following:

○     authorizing curricula

○     creating and administering licensing exams for California court reporters

○     auditing court reporting school requirements

○     responding to any complaints that might arise regarding record keeping and curriculum standards

  • Disciplining professionals in violation of consumer protection law.
  • Managing the transcript reimbursement fund that is responsible for providing deposition services to legal counsel in pro bono cases for indigent clients.

Who funds the board?

The Court Reporters Board of California does not use General Fund tax dollars but rather collects its funding from licensing exams. Therefore making it  a special-fund or self-funded agency.

How many board members are there?

The board consists of five members. Three of those members– a public member and two licensees,are are appointed by the Governor of California Two additional public members are also appointed: one by the Speaker of the Assembly and the other  by the Senate Rules Committee.

Where are they based?

The Court Reporters Board of California has one office in Sacramento, CA.

When were they founded?

As mentioned above, the Court Reporters Board of California was established in 1951 and, since then has licensed more than 13,000 reporters. Over 8,000 of these licensees are currently practicing. These licensees fall into two categories: freelance reporters (who mostly provide deposition services for private agencies such as our court reporting company in San Francisco) and  officials (who work mostly in the courts). All court reporters, whether freelance or official, are subject to licensing standards set forth by the Court Reporters Board of California.

Under the Court Reporters Board of California’s standards, you can rest assured that our professionals will provide with quality, accurate court reporting services for your San Francisco deposition. For more information on our San Francisco, CA deposition services, contact our court reporting company, or schedule a San Francisco Court Reporter online.