The Notary Loophole – Why Digital “Oath-Taking” May Jeopardize the Record

The Core Issue

Across the country, digital reporting firms are exploiting notary commissions to administer oaths in depositions and hearings. The problem: notarial authority is not synonymous with court-reporting authority.

A court reporter is an officer of the court, bound by code and certified under each state’s reporting board or judicial council. They can legally swear in witnesses, certify transcripts, and maintain chain-of-custody over the record.

By contrast, a notary public only verifies identity — they are not officers of the court and cannot certify verbatim transcripts, perform readbacks, or attest to the accuracy of proceedings.

How the Loophole Works

Large national agencies have been quietly contracting with unlicensed digital operators (often overseas) and using a notary’s commission to administer the oath via Zoom or remote platform. This practice allows the company to circumvent state licensing laws governing who may capture and certify testimony.

Some states (like California, Texas, and Illinois) have explicit language that limits deposition reporting to licensed court reporters — but digital agencies have exploited ambiguities in online-notarization laws to disguise uncertified recordings as “official proceedings.”

Legal and Ethical Implications

Chain of Custody: When an uncertified person records and transcribes testimony, there is no officer of the court verifying accuracy or integrity.
Hearsay & Admissibility: Transcripts produced by digital or AI means, without a reporter’s certification, may be inadmissible in trial or summary judgment.
Unauthorized Practice: Allowing notaries to act as de facto court reporters can violate state statutes regulating deposition officers.
Attorney Liability: Law firms relying on such transcripts may later face sanctions or malpractice exposure if the record is challenged.

Case Example (Composite)

In several recent depositions, attorneys later discovered that the “digital reporter” was not licensed — only a remote notary logged the oath. When challenged in court, judges refused to admit the transcript, forcing costly re-depositions and sanctions hearings.

What Attorneys Should Do

Confirm credentials before every deposition. Ask for the reporter’s license number and issuing authority.
Avoid “digital capture” substitutions unless expressly agreed and permitted by state law.
Include certification language in your notice of deposition requiring a “Certified Shorthand Reporter” or equivalent licensed professional.
Educate clients and co-counsel that a notary’s presence does not guarantee a legally valid record.

The Bottom Line

Digital agencies may market notaries as “remote deposition officers,” but in most states, only certified court reporters have lawful authority to administer oaths and certify transcripts. Attorneys who rely on the notary loophole risk their record — and their case.

StenoImperium
Court Reporting. Unfiltered. Unafraid.

Disclaimer

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

The content of this post is intended for informational and discussion purposes only. All opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are based on publicly available information, industry standards, and good-faith concerns about nonprofit governance and professional ethics. No part of this article is intended to defame, accuse, or misrepresent any individual or organization. Readers are encouraged to verify facts independently and to engage constructively in dialogue about leadership, transparency, and accountability in the court reporting profession.

The content on this blog represents the personal opinions, observations, and commentary of the author. It is intended for editorial and journalistic purposes and is protected under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.
Nothing here constitutes legal advice. Readers are encouraged to review the facts and form independent conclusions.

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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. View more posts