A solid grasp of legal terms is crucial for anyone in the legal profession, be it an attorney, paralegal, or court reporter. Court reporters must excel in recognizing, using, and correctly spelling legal terminology, as they frequently arise in court proceedings and queries during depositions.
The Global legal transcription market is valued at around U.S. $1988.9 million in 2021 and will reach U.S. $3267.7 Million by 2029. For people pursuing legal transcription or court reporting, the terminology used by judges, attorneys, jurors, witnesses, and other participants in court proceedings and depositions must be familiar.
In this blog, we have covered the legal terms every Court reporting transcriptionist should know.
What Is the Role of a Court Reporting Transcriptionist?
A court-reporting transcriptionist is like a language expert in the legal world. They listen to what people say in court, like lawyers and witnesses, and write it down word-for-word. Let us break down their role for you:
- Operating Equipment: Court reporting transcriptionists use advanced recording equipment to create an accurate and official record of court proceedings.
- Attending Proceedings: They are present during court sessions to capture spoken words and actions for transcription.
- Producing Transcripts: They generate transcripts upon request from various parties involved in court cases, ensuring accuracy and confidentiality.
- Court Procedure Knowledge: These professionals deeply understand legal procedures, ensuring transcripts adhere to court guidelines and standards.
Related: Is a Transcriptionist the Same as a Professional Court Reporter?
Legal Terms Every Court Reporting Transcriptionist Should Know
- Annotation: Notes made by digital reporters during recording, including speaker identifications, keywords, and essential events for reference.
- Appearances: Attorneys representing parties in a case who participate in legal proceedings, as listed in the case record.
- Arbitration: A dispute resolution process involving a neutral arbitrator who makes binding decisions after hearing evidence from both sides.
- Channel: In audio recordings, separate audio tracks that can be listened to help isolate speakers if people speak simultaneously.
- Co-Counsel: An attorney who jointly represents a client with another lawyer from a different law firm.
- Continuance: The postponement of a legal proceeding to a later date.
- Date of Loss (DOL): The date of an insured event in insurance cases used when filing a claim.
- Discovery: The phase in a lawsuit where parties gather information about each other's claims and defenses.
- EUO (Examination Under Oath): A proceeding for insurance claims where individuals provide sworn statements.
- Exhibit: Documents or objects presented as evidence, marked with identifiers, and described in transcripts.
- Expert Witness: A witness who provides opinion testimony on technical or professional matters.
- Interrogatories: Written questions exchanged between parties in a lawsuit during the discovery phase.
- Jury Charge: A judge gives the jury instructions regarding the applicable law in a case before deliberation.
- Litigation: The legal process for resolving disputes and enforcing contracts or rights.
- Mediation: A process a mediator facilitates to help parties settle a dispute.
- Motion for Summary Judgment: A request to end a case because the opposing party lacks admissible evidence.
- Motion to Dismiss: A request to dismiss a case on various grounds without addressing the merits.
- Peremptory Challenges: The right to remove prospective jurors during selection without reason.
- Playback / Readback: The act of replaying specific parts of a recording upon request.
- Pro Se: A party representing themselves in a case without an attorney.
- Redact: To edit or remove sensitive information from a document.
- Speaker Designation: Identifying speakers in timestamped notes during proceedings for clarity.
- Stipulation: An agreement between attorneys, often spoken into the record and binding when agreed upon.
- Timestamp: A recorded time indicating when annotations or notes were made in digital recording software.
- Voir Dire: The process of selecting or challenging jurors in jury selection or questioning expert witnesses about their qualifications in court.
How to Choose the Right Court Reporting Transcription Service?
When you are picking court transcription services, here are some essential things to consider:
- Make sure they are accurate: The words they write down need to be correct. Choose a transcription service that promises the highest accuracy and can fix mistakes.
- Check the price: Getting court reporting transcripts can be expensive, so make sure it is affordable. Find services that have reasonable prices and let you pay in diverse ways.
- Speed matters: Sometimes, you need the court transcripts quickly. So, pick a service that can do it fast and on time.
- Get help when you need it: If you have problems with the transcription service, you should be able to get help. Ensure the court transcription service you pick is available during working hours without fail if you encounter any issues.
Must Read: How Do Court Reporters Transcribe Legal Proceedings?
Get an Accurate Service for Your Deposition Transcription
Choosing GMR Transcription Inc., as your court reporting transcription service provider, offers invaluable rewards such as:
- Highly Accurate Transcripts: Our U.S.-based, 100% human transcriptionists manually produce 99% accurate court reporting transcripts for all good audios.
- Confidentiality Assurance: Our transcriptionists sign confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements.
- File Security: We use standard encryption to secure your files on our website and servers, protecting sensitive legal information.
- Speaker Identification: Unlike A.I., GMRT's human transcriptionists will correctly identify all speakers throughout group recordings, ensuring precise attribution in legal proceedings.
- Cost Efficiency: You will save costs because our highly accurate court reporting transcripts require no further correction, reducing the overall expenses associated with other transcription services.
- Swift Turnaround: Our fast-turnaround transcription service saves you more time for court sessions or legal research, eliminating the need for time-consuming manual transcription.
- Customizable Transcription: You can customize your court reporting transcription request based on your unique needs, including preferred digital formats and specific requirements.
Getting started with GMR Transcription Services is easy! Begin by creating your client account on our website. Contact us for more information.
