Jerry Hoagland: Court reporters are cleaning up
09:15 AM CDT on Wednesday, March 14, 2007

State laws related to court reporters in the district and county courts are badly broken and are in need of a major overhaul. Consider the following statutory protections given to these public servants:

First, state law says that the court reporter is the official owner of the trial record, so when people need a transcript of the court proceedings, they must purchase a copy directly from the court reporter. Payment is made to the court reporter and not the county, the court reporter's employer. If the county is the party requesting a copy of the transcript, the county must pay the court reporter for the transcript.
 

As president and sole employee of Hollywood-based Case Reporting, Casey D’ Ambrosio chooses her own hours, making a living by transcribing a variety of depositions, hearings and trials.

By Wendy Doscher-Smith
Special to the Herald
 

A Job is Waiting!
Pressure's on court reporters but job is often fascinating Pros jot down everything for the record
By Jenny King / Special to The Detroit News



SOUTHFIELD -- If anyone is qualified to have the last word, it likely is the court reporter. These professionals, trained to record everything that is said in the courtroom, in a deposition or in a movie for closed captioning purposes, take down each syllable. Although it's a high-pressure job and working on some proceedings may be extremely tedious, reporters say they are rewarded with the variety of work and fascinating situations.