The Vanishing Court Reporters: A Crisis in the Justice System and How to Fix It

Posted bystenoimperiumPosted inCourt Reporting, Legal ServicesTags:, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The American justice system relies on an accurate and complete record of courtroom proceedings. At the center of this process are court reporters—highly trained professionals who use stenography to transcribe trials, depositions, and hearings. However, an alarming shortage of court reporters is creating serious disruptions in courts across the country, with California being one of the hardest-hit states. The question is no longer whether this crisis will affect the efficiency of the justice system—it already has. The real question is: What can be done to fix it?

The Growing Shortage of Court Reporters

The shortage of court reporters is not a new problem, but it has reached critical levels in recent years. In California, the number of official court reporters dropped from 430 in 2017 to just 330 in 2022, reflecting a national trend. Some courts, including Los Angeles Superior Court, have been forced to reallocate existing court reporters from certain divisions, such as family law and probate courts, to felony criminal and juvenile cases where their presence is mandated by law.

The lack of court reporters can lead to significant delays in case processing, making it harder for litigants to obtain justice in a timely manner. Without an official transcript, appeals and legal reviews become more challenging, leading to potential miscarriages of justice. The issue is exacerbated by California’s strict certification laws, which prevent out-of-state reporters from working in its courts unless they obtain a California-specific certification—an additional hurdle in an already shrinking labor pool.

Why Are There So Few Court Reporters?

Several factors contribute to the court reporter shortage:

  1. Aging Workforce – Many of today’s court reporters are nearing retirement. A 2014 report by the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA) found that 70% of court reporters were over the age of 46. As they retire, there aren’t enough new professionals entering the field to replace them.
  2. Lack of Interest Among Young Professionals – Despite the potential for high-paying jobs, court reporting is not attracting young talent. In 2019, an estimated 82,000 new students were needed to meet national demand, but fewer than 2,500 were enrolled in training programs. Even fewer successfully completed their certification.
  3. Declining Training Programs – Court reporting schools have been shutting down across the country. In California, only nine such programs remained in 2021, and the licensing exam had a dismal pass rate—only six out of 175 candidates passed that year.

Potential Solutions to the Court Reporter Shortage

While the problem is severe, there are multiple solutions that courts, lawmakers, and the legal industry can explore:

1. Expanding Remote and Digital Court Reporting

Some states already allow digital and electronic recording of court proceedings, but California has been slow to adopt these technologies. Current laws require court reporters to be physically present in courtrooms, preventing remote reporting even when in-person stenographers are unavailable. Lifting these restrictions could help alleviate shortages by allowing certified court reporters from other states to work remotely.

2. Modernizing Certification Requirements

California’s strict certification requirements prevent many skilled court reporters from other states from filling gaps in the workforce. Revising these regulations to recognize certifications from other jurisdictions could significantly expand the available talent pool.

3. Increasing Financial Incentives and Support for Training Programs

Given the high demand for court reporters, more should be done to encourage students to enter the field. State governments and courts could offer scholarships, tuition assistance, or loan forgiveness programs for those who complete court reporting training. Additionally, investment in new and existing training programs could improve graduation rates and licensing success.

4. Promoting Court Reporting as a Viable Career Path

Many young professionals are unaware of the opportunities available in court reporting. Outreach efforts—such as partnerships with high schools, community colleges, and career fairs—could help attract new talent to the field. The promise of job security, competitive salaries, and flexible work options should be highlighted to make court reporting a more appealing career choice.

5. Exploring AI and Voice Recognition Technology

While human court reporters provide unparalleled accuracy, advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) and voice recognition could play a supplementary role in capturing courtroom dialogue. Courts could explore hybrid models that combine human oversight with AI-powered transcription services, improving efficiency while maintaining accuracy.

The Future of Court Reporting

Court reporters are indispensable to the legal system, ensuring that an accurate and complete record of proceedings is preserved. The current shortage threatens the efficiency of the courts, the rights of litigants, and the integrity of legal proceedings. While there is no single solution to this growing crisis, a combination of regulatory reform, technological innovation, financial incentives, and career outreach can help address the problem before it worsens.

As courts struggle to function without enough trained stenographers, the time to act is now. Without immediate intervention, the justice system will face increasing delays, appeals without adequate records, and further erosion of public confidence in fair trials. Whether through legislative changes, education initiatives, or technology-driven solutions, the effort to replenish the court reporter workforce must begin immediately.

Published by stenoimperium

We exist to facilitate the fortifying of the Stenography profession and ensure its survival for the next hundred years! As court reporters, we've handed the relationship role with our customers, or attorneys, over to the agencies and their sales reps.  This has done a lot of damage to our industry.  It has taken away our ability to have those relationships, the ability to be humanized and valued.  We've become a replaceable commodity. Merely saying we are the “Gold Standard” tells them that we’re the best, but there are alternatives.  Who we are though, is much, much more powerful than that!  We are the Responsible Charge.  “Responsible Charge” means responsibility for the direction, control, supervision, and possession of stenographic & transcription work, as the case may be, to assure that the work product has been critically examined and evaluated for compliance with appropriate professional standards by a licensee in the profession, and by sealing and signing the documents, the professional stenographer accepts responsibility for the stenographic or transcription work, respectively, represented by the documents and that applicable stenographic and professional standards have been met.  This designation exists in other professions, such as engineering, land surveying, public water works, landscape architects, land surveyors, fire preventionists, geologists, architects, and more.  In the case of professional engineers, the engineering association adopted a Responsible Charge position statement that says, “A professional engineer is only considered to be in responsible charge of an engineering work if the professional engineer makes independent professional decisions regarding the engineering work without requiring instruction or approval from another authority and maintains control over those decisions by the professional engineer’s physical presence at the location where the engineering work is performed or by electronic communication with the individual executing the engineering work.” If we were to adopt a Responsible Charge position statement for our industry, we could start with a draft that looks something like this: "A professional court reporter, or stenographer, is only considered to be in responsible charge of court reporting work if the professional court reporter makes independent professional decisions regarding the court reporting work without requiring instruction or approval from another authority and maintains control over those decisions by the professional court reporter’s physical presence at the location where the court reporting work is performed or by electronic communication with the individual executing the court reporting work.” Shared purpose The cornerstone of a strategic narrative is a shared purpose. This shared purpose is the outcome that you and your customer are working toward together. It’s more than a value proposition of what you deliver to them. Or a mission of what you do for the world. It’s the journey that you are on with them. By having a shared purpose, the relationship shifts from consumer to co-creator. In court reporting, our mission is “to bring justice to every litigant in the U.S.”  That purpose is shared by all involved in the litigation process – judges, attorneys, everyone.  Who we are is the Responsible Charge.  How we do that is by Protecting the Record.

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