Provide Your Court Reporter with the Correct Spelling of Important Words

Court reporters use stenographs, a machine that records phonetically. While this allows for faster typing, often times, there can be spelling mistakes in a first draft. It is difficult for court reporters to know if something is spelled differently from the way it sounds. By presenting your court reporter with a list of key words, names, or phrases, this can eliminate many spelling areas. This is especially helpful for foreign words, or words that have multiple spellings.

Use Complete Words

Many of us use inarticulate sounds in our every day speech– such as “uh-uh” or “uh-huh” to mean “no” and “yes.” These sorts of sounds are difficult for court reporters to record, as they record what was said and how it was said. There is no shorthand notation for these sounds. If someone uses these sounds, ask for clarification so it can be accurately recorded.

Properly Enunciate

Most certified court reporters can type over 200 words per minute. While this is over three times faster than most people can type, court reporters are still human, and can till have difficulties hearing exactly what was said. Do your best not to mumble, speak too fast, or speak over another person. Speaking as clearly as possible allows court reporters to accurately record what was said.