Attorneys: Five Tips to Sour Your Relationship With Your Court Reporter
March 15, 2012 By James DeCrescenzo Reporting. LLC
A recent meeting of court reporting firm owners from across the country began with an ice breaker. In two minutes each table was challenged to list as many things lawyers do that frustrate us. As a representative from each table read off their lists, among growing laughter and groans, clear trends were revealed. It seems the top five ways to sour your relationship with your court reporter are:
- Reading Too Fast. Court reporters are writing every single word. When an attorney reads very fast just to get through the quote, it becomes impossible to either keep up, or even understand what's being said. That puts us in a difficult position. The ten additional seconds you take to slowly and clearly read the quote makes no difference to the length of the deposition, but it will go a long way to creating a good record and a good reputation among reporters.
- Speaking Over Your Opponent Or The Witness. Most depositions begin with the admonition to the witness to wait until the question is finished before beginning to answer, with the offer to similarly wait until the answer is finished before asking the next question. When that standard is adhered to a clean and usable record is created. Unfortunately, nervousness or emotion often cause a breakdown in the one-at-a-time scenario. The result is a court reporter under incredible stress and a sloppy record.
- No Breaks. Really, does anything else need to be said?
- Walking Away With The Exhibits. Once the deposition is complete, the reporter begins the transcript production process. Part of the transcript is creating an exhibit index. It's impossible to create an exhibit index without the exhibits. But more than that, remember those quotes that were read very fast? We go through the exhibits to make sure we heard and understood what you said.
- Not Paying Your Invoices. The legal profession is in a unique position. It is common for court reporting firms to deliver transcripts without first receiving payment, even if we have no prior experience with a law firm. The proper thing to do is to timely pay for the service you received.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Jim DeCrescenzo
Jim is president and founder of James DeCrescenzo Reporting, LLC, headquartered in Philadelphia, PA. Jim has been a court reporter for over 39 years and is a frequent contributing author to the Tech Tested Lawyer Approved Blog, STAR Newsletter, JCR Magazine, and other publications.
Copyright James DeCrescenzo Reporting. LLC
More information about James DeCrescenzo Reporting. LLC
Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this publication, it is not intended to provide legal advice as individual situations will differ and should be discussed with an expert and/or lawyer. For specific technical or legal advice on the information provided and related topics, please contact the author.
- Speaking Over Your Opponent Or The Witness. Most depositions begin with the admonition to the witness to wait until the question is finished before beginning to answer, with the offer to similarly wait until the answer is finished before asking the next question. When that standard is adhered to a clean and usable record is created. Unfortunately, nervousness or emotion often cause a breakdown in the one-at-a-time scenario. The result is a court reporter under incredible stress and a sloppy record.
- No Breaks. Really, does anything else need to be said?
- Walking Away With The Exhibits. Once the deposition is complete, the reporter begins the transcript production process. Part of the transcript is creating an exhibit index. It's impossible to create an exhibit index without the exhibits. But more than that, remember those quotes that were read very fast? We go through the exhibits to make sure we heard and understood what you said.
- Not Paying Your Invoices. The legal profession is in a unique position. It is common for court reporting firms to deliver transcripts without first receiving payment, even if we have no prior experience with a law firm. The proper thing to do is to timely pay for the service you received.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Jim DeCrescenzo
Jim is president and founder of James DeCrescenzo Reporting, LLC, headquartered in Philadelphia, PA. Jim has been a court reporter for over 39 years and is a frequent contributing author to the Tech Tested Lawyer Approved Blog, STAR Newsletter, JCR Magazine, and other publications.
Copyright James DeCrescenzo Reporting. LLC
More information about James DeCrescenzo Reporting. LLC
Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this publication, it is not intended to provide legal advice as individual situations will differ and should be discussed with an expert and/or lawyer. For specific technical or legal advice on the information provided and related topics, please contact the author.
