If at first you don’t succeed, lie, lie again!

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

If at first you don’t succeed, lie, lie again! It seems like the court reporters in this industry are living in an alternate reality with plotlines that seem to jump out of the hit reality HBO series Pretty Little Liars, with episodes entitled “Reality Bites Me,” “Monsters in the End,” “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” “The Perfect Storm,” “Salt Meets Wound,” “The New Normal,” “Be Careful What you Wish 4,” and “Know Your Frenemies.” Instead of characters who are in a conspiracy to cover up for the mysterious disappearance of a friend, there is a sinister real-world plot to cover up a lie being perpetrated on unsuspecting litigants, attorneys, judges, and court reporters in the legal industry.

“We only use them on public hearings and jobs you don’t want,” they said. Showing a transcript from March 16, 2022, Superior Court of the State of California, County of Los Angeles, reported by a Notary Public, from Atkinson Baker, A Veritext Company.

A Web of Deception

What was once a profession built on integrity and impartiality has been slowly infiltrated by a corporate culture that prioritizes profit over the truth. Court reporters, who are expected to be the guardians of an accurate record, are now finding themselves at the mercy of corporate entities more concerned with cost-cutting than quality control. The industry is increasingly being dominated by large firms that outsource work to individuals with minimal qualifications, replacing highly trained stenographers with digital recordings and uncertified typists who lack the legal knowledge and precision necessary for accurate transcription.

The result? A system rife with errors, misrepresentations, and outright fabrications. Transcripts are riddled with inaccuracies, key testimonies are omitted or distorted, and in many cases, the final records do not match what was actually said in the courtroom. This has led to appeals being denied, cases being unfairly decided, and a loss of trust in the very institutions meant to uphold justice.

The Corporate Takeover

Traditionally, court reporters were independent professionals or worked for small agencies, ensuring a high level of accountability. However, in the past decade, large corporate entities such as Veritext, US Legal Support, and Magna Legal Services have aggressively acquired smaller firms, consolidating the industry under their control. Their business model prioritizes volume and cost-cutting, often at the expense of accuracy and professionalism.

One of the biggest concerns is the widespread use of uncertified digital reporters who simply record proceedings and send them off to be transcribed by low-paid overseas workers or artificial intelligence programs. This shift has introduced numerous issues, from technical malfunctions to grossly inaccurate transcripts. Despite these problems, companies continue to market this approach as a “cost-effective alternative” to traditional stenographic reporting.

The Lie That Keeps on Spinning

The deception is not just limited to the quality of transcripts. Many court reporting firms have been caught misleading attorneys and judges about their services. They claim to provide professional, certified court reporters when in reality, they are using unlicensed notaries, digital recorders, or inadequately trained personnel. When confronted, their response is often a carefully crafted PR spin, insisting that these methods are “industry standard” and “compliant with legal requirements.”

Attorneys who request traditional stenographers are frequently misled, only discovering after the fact that their proceedings were recorded rather than transcribed in real time. By then, it is often too late to correct the errors that inevitably arise in the final transcript. This bait-and-switch tactic not only undermines the integrity of the legal system but also places attorneys in precarious positions when they unknowingly rely on flawed records.

The Consequences of Inaccuracy

For those unfamiliar with the legal process, the impact of inaccurate transcripts may not be immediately apparent. However, consider the following real-world consequences:

  1. Wrongful Convictions: If a criminal trial transcript contains errors, misquotations, or missing testimony, it can lead to wrongful convictions or prevent legitimate appeals from moving forward.
  2. Civil Litigation Disasters: In high-stakes lawsuits, a single mistranscription can change the outcome of a case, costing businesses and individuals millions of dollars.
  3. Lost Careers and Reputations: Attorneys rely on transcripts for depositions, trial preparation, and appeals. An inaccurate transcript can discredit a lawyer’s argument, damage their reputation, and, in some cases, lead to professional malpractice claims.
  4. Undermining Public Trust: When litigants and the public lose confidence in the legal process, the fundamental principles of justice and due process are at risk.

A Call to Action

The legal community cannot afford to ignore this growing crisis. Attorneys, judges, and policymakers must take a stand against the corporate takeover of court reporting and demand transparency, accountability, and adherence to professional standards. Some potential steps include:

  • Legislative Action: Passing laws that require certified stenographic reporters for legal proceedings and prohibit the use of unlicensed digital recorders in court.
  • Industry Oversight: Establishing stricter regulations and enforcement mechanisms to hold court reporting firms accountable for misrepresentations and substandard services.
  • Attorney Awareness: Lawyers must be vigilant about the court reporting services they use, explicitly requesting certified stenographers and refusing to accept digital recordings without proper oversight.
  • Consumer Advocacy: Encouraging litigants and businesses to demand transparency in the selection of court reporting services, ensuring that they receive accurate and reliable transcripts.

Final Thoughts

The legal system relies on the accuracy and integrity of the record, and court reporters have long been the unsung heroes ensuring that justice is preserved. However, the creeping influence of profit-driven corporations threatens to erode the profession’s integrity, turning a once-respected field into a race to the bottom.

If at first you don’t succeed, the answer is not to lie, lie again. It is time to expose the truth, hold bad actors accountable, and restore faith in the court reporting industry. The legal community, and indeed the principles of justice itself, depend on it.

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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