Legal Transcription FAQs: A Comprehensive List | GMR Transcription

Outsourcing legal transcription can help law firms and independent attorneys be organized and have more time to work on their cases.

Choosing the right legal transcription services provider is vital to getting high-quality transcripts. Below are some questions you should ask when evaluating a potential transcription company to hire:

Quality Assurance

Do you specialize in legal transcription?

Not all transcription requirements are the same. Medical and legal transcription projects are particularly different mainly because they are often full of industry terminologies that may be difficult to understand or spell. Therefore, not just any transcriber can work on such projects.

Find out whether the company you want to hire has specialized in legal transcription. The employees should understand the terminologies used frequently in the legal industry.

How do you manage projects?

The quality of your transcript will depend on how the project is handled. Find out how the transcription services provider handles and manages projects. Ideally, you want a service provider with well-laid out steps that will ensure your project is received on time, assigned to the right employees, and submitted within a reasonable timeframe.

What format will my transcripts be delivered in?

Finally, find out the format of the transcripts that will be delivered. For example, will the transcripts be delivered as PDF, MS Word or text documents? If you have a specific format that you would like the final transcripts to be delivered in, let the transcription company know.

Employee Matters

Do you sign non-disclosure agreements (NDAs)?

Will the company be willing to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with your firm? An NDA will help to protect your law firm from exploitation and potential downfalls that may result from working with the transcription company. For example, an NDA can help to protect your firm’s trade secrets.

Project Timelines

What is the typical project turn-around time?

How long will the company take to finish your project? The turn-around time will usually depend on the complexity and size of your project. If you need the project to be completed within a short time, choose a transcription company with a large pool of transcribers.

Cost

How much will a project cost me?

The cost of the legal transcription services is another important factor to consider. Most of the time, transcription companies charge a fixed price per minute audio. The price can change depending on how quickly you would like to get your content back or the quality of your audio files

What other costs should I be aware of?

Find out about any other costs you may have to cater for. For example, if you need the transcribed content to be printed, you may incur extra charges. Moreover, if you need the content transcribed urgently, you may be charged a higher price.

What payment methods do you accept?

Find out about the company’s acceptable payment methods. This is important for accounting purposes on your end. Does the company take checks or credit cards? Would you be required to pay upfront or will you be billed on a regular schedule?

Data Security

How do you keep client data secure?

Finally, check the measures that the company has in place to protect your data. The legal content you want to be transcribed may include confidential sessions with your clients. You do not want this data out in the hands of unauthorized third parties.

Choose a legal transcription services company with strong in-house data security policies to ensure your content would be secure.