Workers Compensation: Your Safety Net

Court reporters provide a valuable service to lawyers, judges, and the like. They use their advanced skills to keep record of depositions and other important legal sessions, then transcribe it. There are a lot of myths about what court reporters do and what might happen to their career in the future. If you are thinking about hiring a court reporter, the following myths can help you learn more about them and how valuable they can be.

They Are Glorified Typists

This misconception could not be further from the truth. Court reporters do much more than just type documents. They are trained not only to type, and type fast, but they use shorthand so they can capture entire conversations without missing anything. Additionally, court reporting is a very demanding job. They must be able to keep track of multiple voices at one time, and know who is talking and when. This can be complicated and proves knowing how to type is only one of many skills a good court reporter must have.

Computers Will Someday Do Their Job

A myth about court reporting is that due to technological advancements, computers will someday take over their job. While computers can record sounds and convert it to words, no type of technology can replace what the human ear is able to hear. Speech recognition software is extremely limited, and nowhere near what the brain and skills of a court reporter can accomplish. Computers are far from being able to do this job.

Court Reporters Work in the Court Room

While some court reporters do work in court rooms to transcribe trials and hearings, this is only one of many things they do. They also report political hearings, webcasts, medical conferences, religious services, and business meetings. Within legal settings, they are not only in the court room, but present during depositions, divorce cases, and meetings with the judge. No matter what industry you are in, you are likely to need a court reporter's services at some point.

Court Reporters Are Stenographers

This is actually something many people don't know. It is easy to confuse the two, but these are actually two different professions. Stenographers don't usually listen to the conversations as they happen. Instead, the meeting or hearing is first recorded, and then they listen to the recording as they transcribe it. Court reporters are there while it is happening, so they must be extremely fast and be able to catch multiple conversations at one time. (For more information, contact Farrell Court Reporting or another company)