A Court Reporter's Gift to You

Just like a judge or a mediator, court reporters have a duty to be impartial and fair to both sides of the case.  Everyone relies on this, they trust that verbatim transcripts are just that, verbatim. They trust that both sides receive the same service and the transcript is equally available. Without this fairness and impartiality, the system would be threatened. This is our duty – and our gift to you. Trust that we will treat you the same as the other party.

It's the only gift we can give. When court reporters begin to offer gifts, rewards, points or anything that can be exchanged for value, anything offered in exchange for work – even significantly reduced pricing --the integrity of their impartiality is threatened. The critical role that court reporters have as impartial and neutral officers of the court is undermined.

Court reporters who are members of the National Court Reporters Association’s Ethics First program are part of an “effort to encourage court reporters, firms, and the clients that they serve to promote the impartiality and neutrality of the court reporting profession and avoid even the appearance of impropriety with regards to inappropriate gift-giving.”

Look for this pledge from your court reporting firm and know that you are receiving a gift of trust and impartiality and a commitment from your court reporter to serving as an un-biased officer of the court.