We exist to fortify the stenography profession and ensure its survival for the next hundred years. Over time, court reporters have surrendered the relationship with our clients—attorneys—to agencies and their sales reps. This shift has caused lasting damage. It stripped us of the chance to build trust, to be recognized as human professionals of value, and has reduced us to a commodity.
Calling ourselves the “Gold Standard” suggests quality but still implies alternatives. In truth, who we are is far more powerful. We are the Responsible Charge.
“Responsible Charge” means the licensed stenographer assumes responsibility for the direction, supervision, and integrity of the record. By signing and sealing a transcript, we affirm that it has been critically examined and meets all professional standards. This principle exists in other respected fields—engineering, surveying, architecture, geology—where professionals alone hold ultimate accountability for their work.
For example, engineering’s Responsible Charge standard says: A professional engineer is only in responsible charge if they make independent professional decisions without requiring instruction or approval from another authority and maintain control by physical presence or direct communication with those executing the work.
Our profession deserves the same clarity. A draft position for court reporters might read:
A professional court reporter is only in responsible charge of reporting work if they make independent professional decisions regarding the work without requiring instruction or approval from another authority and maintain control by their presence in the proceeding or by direct communication with those executing the work.
This definition restores our rightful role—not as replaceable technicians, but as trusted professionals safeguarding justice.
At the heart of this is shared purpose. The cornerstone of our strategic narrative is the outcome we pursue with our clients, not just for them. In litigation, our shared purpose is to ensure justice for every litigant in the United States. Judges, attorneys, and reporters alike serve this mission.
Who we are: the Responsible Charge.
How we serve that purpose: by Protecting the Record.
Why I Remain Anonymous
This blog remains anonymous by design — not out of fear, but out of purpose.
The goal of StenoImperium is to shine a light on patterns of exploitation, misconduct, and retaliation that affect the court reporting profession. Who I am is less important than what’s being exposed.
In a climate where speaking out leads to coordinated legal threats, harassment, and public discrediting, anonymity protects not just me, but the integrity of this work. It keeps the focus on the facts — where it belongs — not on personalities or distractions.
If the content of this blog is false, it can be challenged on its merits. But if the content is true, my identity shouldn’t change a thing.
📢 Supporters vs. Critics: Why This Blog Exists
StenoImperium was created to ask hard questions, expose uncomfortable truths, and challenge power structures that have gone unexamined in the court reporting profession for too long.
Not everyone likes that.
Some people support this work because they see the need for accountability, transparency, and ethical leadership in our field.
Others criticize it — often not with facts or counterarguments, but with personal attacks, accusations of “hate,” and threats of legal retaliation.
Let’s be very clear:
🔹 Criticism is not harassment.
🔹 Transparency is not bullying.
🔹 Holding people accountable is not “mean.”
🔹 And asking who profits from our labor is not a personal vendetta — it’s a professional responsibility.
This blog exists to speak truth to power — even when it’s uncomfortable. Especially when it’s uncomfortable.
You don’t have to agree with everything published here. But if your only response is to attack the messenger or silence dissent, you’re proving why this platform matters in the first place.
If you’re here to learn, to question, to think critically — welcome.
If you’re here to intimidate, discredit, or distract — we’re not going anywhere.
– StenoImperium
Contact & Disclosure
StenoImperium is an independent, anonymous blog dedicated to commentary, analysis, and public-interest journalism focused on the court reporting and legal transcription fields. All content reflects the author’s personal opinions, based on research, reporting, and direct observation.
This platform complies with relevant communication and privacy standards.
Mailing Address for Correspondence:
StenoImperium
PMB 6037
355 S Grand Ave, Suite 2450
Los Angeles, CA 90071
United States
STENOIMPERIUM 