Archives for August 2012

Every court reporter remembers their first official deposition or court hearing — I certainly do! My first employer assured me she would not send me out alone to a deposition until I was ready. And, being a 20-year-old newbie, I believed her. My sheltered North Dakota upbringing maybe (most probably) had a hand in my naïveté regarding such matters.

One of the initial benefits of becoming a court reporter (according to my 16-year-old shy self) was the fact that court reporters were portrayed as the “Silent Person” in the courtroom. While that is true to a certain extent, I realize, after my 30 years of being a court reporter, that one definitely needs to be more than that “Silent Person.”

Today’s deposition prompted this blog post, so let me set the stage:

1. I arrived 30 minutes early to the job. Videographer was in process of setting up his equipment. Great!
2. Next, I proceeded to set up my laptop and writer. Fifteen minutes before the appointed start time, the videographer and I are ready to go.
3. Attorneys started to arrive. Upon their entrance in the deposition room, I immediately introduced myself, shook their hand, and exchanged business cards. Pretty simple; right? (This used to be the hardest part of my job when I was a young reporter. I always had a knot in the pit of my stomach at the beginning of each job just thinking about those dreaded introductions.)
4. When the witness arrives, he is escorted to his seat — right next to me, of course! I always insist on this so that I am able to hear the softest of voices. Then I introduce myself to the witness and request that he/she spell their first and last names. Even some of the most common names may have an unusual spelling. Number-one rule, in my estimation, is: never misspell the witness’s name.

Okay, now the stage is set. After I have the spelling I need, opposing counsel turns to me and says, “Lynette, you are so nice. It is so refreshing!” Of course, I always love to hear positive feedback. Who doesn’t? He proceeded to inform everyone in the room that attorneys from his home state wouldn’t know what to do with me. He advised that I could move to his state and have almost instant job security. Apparently, at least according to his experience, attorneys can barely get the name of the court reporter in attendance. I know my professionalism and congeniality left a favorable impression with counsel.

Our court reporting profession is a great one with many extremely competent people with high-level skill. With so much competition in the marketplace, court reporters should be aware always of potential consequences of personal interactions with legal professionals and witnesses alike — your livelihood may depend on it!

I now realize (after taking over 5,000 depositions and hearings in a dozen states) that court reporters have never really been the “Silent Person” in the courtroom. We play a vital and important role in the judicial process, to be sure. We are a valuable and integral partner with attorneys and their cases. We provide the experience, skill, and technology for their transcript needs. But, remember, we have an obligation to market ourselves and to be advocates of our great profession by having positive verbal communication and interactions with others. We truly are more than the “Silent Person” in the courtroom!