A few more tips on creating a clear, concise and accurate
record:
Know your ABCs and your 1-2-3s
Rapidly spouting out acronyms and numbers can cause a lot of
confusion. Many consonants have similar sounds so speaking clearly, taking a
moment to spell the acronym and using clarifying names such as M as in Mary
will ensure that acronyms are correct in the transcript. Numbers can be equally
confusing. Clarify what the number represents, percentage, dollar, time, et
cetera.
Methyl-Ethyl-What?
Court reporters acquire a broad general knowledge of terms
and subject matters. However, in our world of advanced technologies, it’s
impossible to be familiar with every possible subject matter. You may be very
familiar with the specialized terminology in your case, the court reporter may
or may not be. By providing the court reporter with a glossary of technical
terms – especially if it’s a realtime display – will help create an accurate
record and minimize interruption for clarification during the proceedings.
Show and Tell
For efficient handling of items of evidence, briefly and
adequately identify by stating both the date and an identifying feature and
when referring to an exhibit, specify the exhibit number. If there are going to
be a large number of items entered into evidence let the reporter know in
advance and give them enough time to mark the exhibit and make a note in the
record before proceeding.
Using these few tips at your next proceeding will not only
help create an accurate record it will also make your court reporter very
happy.
