Nowadays, the proceedings in the court rooms are recorded on camera, but still court reporters are required to record all that is said in a trial. Not much is known about this profession, therefore read the court reporter job description which will provide you with the correct information.
Court reporters have existed from a long time. They record each and everything that is said within the trial. From the witnesses' testimony to the arguments of the legal counsels, all of it is typed by the court reporter and those documents are filed and kept safely. They can later be used as reference. Lawyers use notes of previous cases to argue their own cases. Hence, the job of a court reporter is extremely important.
The things that are said in the court are said at quite a fast pace. Hence, the court reporters have to be extremely fast at typing. They should know short hand typing. In short hand different words are represented by a single character which makes it easier for the typist to type it. This is one of the foremost requirements in a court reporter job description.
The latest advancement in this profession has been the use of stenotype machines. These machines have various combinations of characters, and when these characters are used together, they form a word. This helps the reporters to type the words said in the courtroom almost at the speed at which they are said.
Another method that is popular is the voice writing method. The reporters have a mask on their face in which a microphone is attached. The reporter then repeats whatever is said in the court and it gets recoded, and because of the mask, the reporter cannot be heard by anyone in court. Later the reporter listens to the recording and types it down. This way, they have a written and voice record of the court proceedings.
All these files are stored by the reporter and they can be retrieved easily. The courtroom reporters make good money and the education required for this profession is not that high. However, they need to have an understanding of legal jargon, as it is quite commonly used in courtrooms. They should have some basic knowledge about laws. They also need to have special training in using stenotype machines. To know about advancement in this career, read the detailed court reporter job description given.
Duties and Responsibilities of a Courtroom Reporter
Educational Qualification Needed for a Courtroom Reporter
Career Advancement
Court reporters, after gaining good experience get management or administration position in the courts, and they also get good benefits in these posts.
The court reporter job description may just be recording the proceedings of a case, but it requires a lot of skill to do this efficiently.