Court Reporter Training and Careers

Court reporters capture speeches, conversations, legal proceedings, meetings and other events when written accounts of spoken words are necessary for correspondence, records or legal proof.

In addition to reporting court proceedings, reporters transcribe depositions and other parts of pretrial proceedings. Court reporters also provide closed-captioning and real-time translation services to those in the deaf and hard-of-hearing community.

Most court reporters use computer-aided transcription (computers tied to a stenotype machine) to turn their notes into readable print. The accurate work of court reporters is vital to an effective judicial system.

According to the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA), only about 27 percent of the court reporters in the US actually work in court. The rest are freelance reporters hired by attorneys to report depositions of potential trial witnesses, so might work in law offices or in offices rented by lawyers in a neutral, third-party setting.

Court reporters must complete a 2-to-4-year associate's or bachelor's degree program. Most court reporting programs cover legal terminology, criminal and appellate procedure, in addition to computer-aided transcription and real-time reporting. NCRA-approved programs require students to capture a minimum of 225 words per minute.

Requirements vary widely, but court reporter certification is highly recommended because most employers require it. Some states require court reporters to be Notaries Public in addition to being a Certified Court Reporter (CCR).

The National Court Reporters Association offers the title Registered Professional Reporter (RPR) to those who pass a four-part examination and participate in continuing education programs. A reporter may obtain additional certifications that demonstrate higher levels of competency, such as Certified Real-time Reporter (CRR).

Court reporters earned an average annual salary of $52,460, according to the May 2009 data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle 50 percent earned between $34,710 and $67,420, but the top 10 percent earned more than $89,000.

Many salaried court reporters supplement their income by doing additional freelance work. Freelance court reporters are paid per job and receive a per-page fee for transcripts.

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