Major Differences Between County Court Reporters And Legal Transcribers The expertise, experience, and skills of the certified county court reporters are considered as a powerful asset in the courtroom. The presence of court reporters at depositions, trials, or legal proceedings as well as the help of the legal transcribers can really mean a lot especially for attorneys who are preparing cases for trial.
Many people have already heard about the professions legal transcribers and court reporters and think that they are just exactly the same since they both prepare transcripts for legal trials. Although both the court reporters and legal transcribers transcribe spoken or recorded words, they differ from each other in many ways. The major difference between these two professions, though, is how, what, when, and where they do the transcribing. Here are a few points that will help you further understand how the court reporter and legal transcriber differ from each other. Job Descriptions
A certified court reporter or a stenographer is the person who records, types, and transcribes a verbatim report of everything that is spoken or of all the legal proceedings in a court of law. As you noticed in a court proceeding, different people speak in front of the audience. The work of the court reporter is to type down or record everything that was said by the judge, witnesses, the prosecutor, the bailiff, the plaintiff’s lawyer, the respondent’s lawyer, the jury, and the clerk not only during the court proceedings but also during the selection of jury, including the different potential questions and answers of the jurors. Machine and Devices
The national court reporters record spoken words with the use of a specialized typewriter called steno-machine. Unlike the usual typewriter, the steno machine is composed only of a few keys making it possible for court reporters to type as accurate, as efficient, and as fast as they can since they are attending to a live court proceeding. They will then use the recorded information to create the official transcript of the proceeding. The legal transcribers, on the other hand, uses a tape recorder to record all the spoken words during the court proceedings. They will then produce a typewritten copy of the recorded information with the use of a specialized transcription machine. Since the legal transcribers are working with an audio file, they can rewind, recheck, or listen again to the recorded information to make sure that they did not miss anything. Employers Both the court reporters and the legal transcribers can either be self-employed or employed by a court reporting agency or legal transcribing firm. Court reporters normally work in the courtroom while most of the transcribers work at a law office or from home.
Training and Certifications
In order for an individual to be a county court reporter, he needs to go through an extensive formal training program which can take two to four years to complete at a National Court Reporters Association accredited institution. Court reporters also need to get appropriate certifications in order to work in a court reporting firm in Georgia. During the training, they are also taught of the different techniques for using the steno machine as well as for verbatim transcription. Unlike the court reporters, the transcribers only take one to two years of training. The requirements needed to become a transcriber is also not as stringent as that of a court reporter. Both the transcribers and the court reporters need to complete and pass the extensive coursework in legal procedures and terminology.