Weekly Pay vs. 30-Day Law – What California Reporters Need to Know About Lexitas’s New Policy

Lexitas recently announced that it is shifting its payroll processing from TP.One to its own internal system, along with a new weekly payment schedule. Beginning September 12, 2025, reporters will be paid every Friday for jobs turned in the prior week. At first glance, this sounds like a victory for reporters who have long struggled with delayed payments, confusing payroll practices, and opaque timelines. But as with everything in this industry, the fine print matters.

California has a new law that requires agencies to pay independent contractors—reporters included—within 30 days of completing services, as I’ve written about in the past. This requirement applies whether or not an invoice has been submitted. That last part is critical: agencies cannot delay payment by claiming a reporter failed to invoice or by tying payment to internal “turn-in” calendars.

So how does Lexitas’s weekly schedule stack up against the law? And what does this mean for per diem jobs versus transcript work, and even more importantly, for the long-abused area of copy orders? Let’s break it down.

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The California 30-Day Rule

As of January 1, 2025, California Labor Code amendments set a bright-line rule: independent contractors must be paid within 30 days of completing their work. The intent is to stop agencies from stretching payment cycles out to 60 or 90 days and placing the financial burden on reporters.

The key points reporters need to know:

1. Completion of services starts the clock.
   • If you show up for a deposition or court proceeding and no transcript is ordered, your service is complete that day. The agency must pay you within 30 days of that date.
   • If a transcript is ordered, the service is not “complete” until you submit the transcript. At that point, the agency has 30 days to pay you.
2. Invoices are not a prerequisite.
   The law does not require contractors to submit an invoice to trigger payment. Agencies must track their own jobs and pay reporters on time regardless of paperwork.
3. Penalties are real.
   Late payment can trigger Labor Commissioner complaints or PAGA actions, exposing agencies to statutory penalties and attorney’s fees.

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The Per Diem vs. Transcript Distinction

This is where many agencies blur the lines, intentionally or not.

• Per diem jobs are appearance fees: you show up, you cover the proceeding, you get paid. Nothing more is required unless a transcript is later ordered. Legally, the clock starts ticking on payment the day of the job.
• Transcript jobs involve additional services. Until you turn in the finished transcript, the job is not complete. Once submitted, the 30-day clock starts.

What agencies cannot do is fold per diem jobs into a “turn-in calendar” designed for transcripts. If you appear at a deposition on September 1, you must be paid by October 1—even if no transcript exists to “turn in.”

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Copy Orders and the “Pay-When-Paid” Myth

One of the biggest abuses reporters have endured for years is delayed or missing payment on copy orders. Agencies often say: “We’ll pay you when we get paid by the copy-ordering attorney.” That practice might have been industry custom, but under California’s 30-day law, it’s no longer legal.

Here’s why:

1. A copy transcript is still a service.
   The moment you deliver that transcript—whether it’s an original or a copy—the service is complete. The agency has 30 days to pay you, period.
2. Client payment is irrelevant.
   If the agency’s client doesn’t pay for 60, 90, or 120 days, that’s the agency’s problem. The agency assumed that business risk when it accepted the copy order. They cannot shift that risk to you by making you wait.
3. The law overrides industry practice.
   Even if “pay-when-paid” has been widespread, California law has now set a firm deadline. No private arrangement, client excuse, or agency custom can trump the statute.
4. Noncompliance is risky.
   Agencies that continue to delay copy-order payments until collection are in violation of the law. Reporters have the right to file Labor Commissioner claims or even group PAGA actions to enforce compliance.

This is one of the most important aspects of the new law. For decades, copy orders have been a sore spot: reporters do the work, but agencies treat copy revenue like a floating bank account, sometimes never passing the reporter’s share down at all. The 30-day requirement slams the door on that practice.

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Lexitas’s New Weekly Schedule

The Lexitas email to reporters outlines the following:

• September 5: final biweekly payment from TP.One.
• September 12: first weekly payment from Lexitas, covering jobs turned in between August 27–September 2.
• September 19: weekly payment covering jobs turned in between September 3–9.

And so on.

On paper, this is faster than the law requires. If reporters truly get paid one week after turning in jobs, Lexitas will be ahead of the 30-day requirement. But the open questions are:

1. How are per diems being handled?
   If Lexitas requires a transcript “turn-in” as a condition for payment, per diem jobs could fall through the cracks. Unless Lexitas cuts checks for appearances within 30 days of the job date, it would not be in compliance.
2. How are copy orders being handled?
   If Lexitas waits until attorneys pay for copies before releasing reporter pay, that also violates the law. Reporters must be paid within 30 days of delivering the copy, regardless of client payment status.

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Why Invoicing Is Irrelevant

Agencies sometimes use invoicing as a shield: “We can’t pay you until you invoice us.” California’s law takes that excuse off the table.

• The legal responsibility is on the agency to track its contractors and pay within 30 days.
• A reporter who forgets or delays invoicing does not give the agency more time to pay.
• Even if Lexitas builds an internal workflow around “turn-in calendars,” it cannot tie legal compliance to a reporter’s paperwork.

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Risks of Noncompliance

The stakes for agencies are high. If Lexitas or any agency fails to pay within 30 days, it risks:

• Labor Commissioner complaints by individual reporters.
• PAGA lawsuits, which allow reporters to sue on behalf of themselves and other contractors for systemic violations.
• Reputational harm, especially in an industry already plagued by mistrust and power imbalances between agencies and working reporters.

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What Reporters Should Do

1. Track your jobs. Keep a record of appearance dates, transcript submission dates, and copy deliveries. Mark the 30-day deadlines on your own calendar.
2. Monitor per diem payments. Make sure those checks are arriving within 30 days of the job, not delayed until a transcript order or “turn-in” cycle.
3. Watch copy-order payments. If you’re being told “we pay when we get paid,” know that it’s unlawful under current California law.
4. Document communication. If you notice a delay, email the agency and ask for clarification. Written records matter.
5. Know your rights. You are not required to invoice, and you cannot be forced to wait beyond 30 days.
6. Push back professionally. A simple email asking “How is this compliant with the 30-day requirement?” puts the agency on notice.

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Why This Matters Beyond Lexitas

Lexitas is one of the largest players in the industry. How it implements California’s new law will likely influence other agencies. If Lexitas gets it right—separating per diems from transcript jobs, paying weekly without requiring invoices, and paying copy orders on time—it sets a strong standard. If it gets it wrong, it creates a roadmap for abuse until reporters push back.

This isn’t just about one company. It’s about the long-standing culture in court reporting where agencies control the money and reporters are expected to wait. California’s new law shifts the balance: timely payment is no longer optional.

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The Bigger Picture – Protecting Reporter Livelihoods

Court reporters face enormous pressures—declining pay, digital competition, and increasing demands on turnaround time. Delayed payments add insult to injury, forcing reporters to float agencies’ cash flow for weeks or months at a time.

By enforcing a 30-day rule, California has recognized that contractors deserve the same financial stability as employees. For reporters, that means less chasing down checks, fewer cash-flow crunches, and more predictability in a profession already rife with uncertainty.

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Conclusion

Lexitas’s move to a weekly pay schedule is, in theory, good news. Faster checks are always welcome. But reporters should not confuse “weekly pay” with legal compliance. The law requires:

• Per diems paid within 30 days of the job date.
• Transcript jobs paid within 30 days of submission.
• Copy orders paid within 30 days of delivery, not when the agency gets paid.
• No invoices required.

Weekly pay cycles that depend on “turn-in calendars” may comply for transcripts but not for per diems or copy orders. Reporters need to stay vigilant, ask questions, and hold agencies accountable.

The bottom line is this: California law is on the reporter’s side. Agencies must adapt—not the other way around.

AMENDMENT:

After raising these concerns directly with Lexitas, I received a reply from CEO David Dobson, who wrote:

It’s encouraging to hear Lexitas acknowledge the importance of compliance and affirm its commitment to staying ahead of legal requirements. At the same time, the response did not address the specifics reporters care most about—how per diems, transcripts, and copy orders will each be treated under the 30-day rule. Without that clarity, many reporters remain cautious.

This highlights a larger truth: it’s not enough for agencies to say they’re in compliance—reporters need transparency on how compliance is achieved. Whether it’s separating per diem payments from transcript turn-in schedules or ensuring copy orders are not tied to client collections, the details matter.

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REFERENCES:

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 988, known as the Freelance Worker Protection Act (FWPA), into law on September 28, 2024. Effective January 1, 2025, this legislation introduces critical safeguards for freelancers, including mandatory written contracts and stringent payment timelines. For court reporters operating as independent contractors, understanding and leveraging the FWPA is essential to ensure fair compensation and legal compliance.

Here’s a link to the full text of SB 988 — the Freelance Worker Protection Act:

Bill Text: CA SB988 (2023-2024) Enrolled

https://legiscan.com/CA/text/SB988/id/3019399?utm_source=chatgpt.com

And here’s the bill on the official CA Legislative Information site:
SB 988 — CA Legislative Information

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB988&utm_source=chatgpt.com

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StenoImperium
Court Reporting. Unfiltered. Unafraid.

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“This article includes analysis and commentary based on observed events, public records, and legal statutes.”

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