On The Record Court Reporting

Anyone involved in the legal realm would definitely know the important role court reporters, otherwise known as judicial reporters play especially in court reporting Ontario proceedings. You read it right. While many of us think that the important characters in any legal proceedings are limited to the lawyers, judge and jury – as they determine the outcome of a case, not a lot of people realize that court reporters are an essential part of the legal scenario.


Court reporters are those who we knew before as court stenographers or short hand or law reporters. A court reporter’s primary responsibility is the accurate transcription of spoken or recorded speech as they happen in the proceedings, into a written format using a variety of ways, including shorthand or stenography through stenotype machine, computer-aided transcription device or a digital audio equipment. The exact transcription becomes a valuable tool or instrument for the justice system.


Court reporting is a profession that requires specialization in converting the spoken word into readable information and making them available for search and archiving. While court reporters usually sit in a deposition in law offices or inside the courtroom to provide verbatim transcription of the proceedings, they also render their services beyond the courtroom and into the private walls of businesses during executive proceedings or shareholder’s meetings.


Most of the time, court reporters are referred to as record guardians since they present an impartial role in the legal proceedings by merely capturing the spoken words of everyone involved in the court proceedings. They are responsible for protecting the integrity of the transcribed records. They are trained to be neutral and having no personal interest in the resulting outcome of any proceedings. Court reporters are individuals trained at achieving highest level of accuracy in the transcribed records based on what was said and spoken during the proceedings. They are also trained to leave off-the-record discussions out by turning their equipment off so that they don’t include confidential or off-the-record conversations. They should be able to provide certified transcripts readily.


The verbatim transcription of the entire legal activity becomes the official transcript or record which helps safeguard the legal process. Any party in any legal proceeding may access the official transcript as and when they deem fit and necessary for their case. These transcripts help lawyers in preparing for trial or appeal.


In the United States and Canada, it is said that the future of court reporting is slowly but surely moving out of the august halls of the courtroom. Court reporters have started to shift to digital reporting. A court reporter, instead of being physically present in a courtroom, can now use an audio recording device to listen to and prepare the official transcripts in the comforts of his office or home. Different from previous practices, Alberta now requires court reporters only during jury criminal trials while the courts in Ontario are gradually replacing court reporters with monitoring positions.


Given the new trends and spin-offs that evolved from traditional court reporting practices, it is not to say that traditional court reporters are pushed into the backseat. While it is true that many courtrooms are now installed with digital audio recording equipment as dictated by technology advancement, traditional court reporters remain to be very valuable particularly in cases that require or demand speedy transcript of the proceedings. Court reporters who are present during the proceedings have firsthand knowledge of what was said and therefore transcribed accurately. A digital recording device can neither ask for clarification when needed nor mark exhibits into evidence. Only a court reporter present in the courtroom is able to do that.


So even with the so-called digital shift, court reporters are here to stay and will remain to be an integral part of court reporting Ontario legal proceedings.