Tip for a Successful Deposition

Make Things Easier with These Tips

Accurate transcripts are the foundation of a successful case. Ensure your transcript is the best it can be and make your court reporter’s life a little easier by following through with these simple steps.

Provide a list of Key Words and Phrases

Unlike keyboards on your everyday laptop, the keys on a stenograph are sorted phonetically. This means that court reporters must press a number of keys at once that represent sounds in order to record a word. When the legal proceedings are finished, reporters must go back to their transcript and correct spelling in a second draft. If your case involves a number of unfamiliar names, words, phrases, or if a word used has more than one spelling, a reporter won’t be certain whether or not they are spelling the word correctly. Before the deposition, present your reporter with a list of these key words and phrases that may cause spelling errors so they can produce the most accurate transcript possible.

Enunciate

While court reporters can type at speeds averaging between 180 and 200 words per minute, they are still limited by human senses. If if a witness or attorney mumbles, speaks to quickly, or speaks over another person, it can be difficult to discern what is said by who, which leads to inaccuracies in reporting. Instruct everyone involved to speak slowly, clearly, and not cut off other attorneys or witnesses.

Use Complete Words, Not Inarticulate Sounds

In our everyday lives, we use inarticulate sounds such as “uh-huh” and “uh-uh” to replace common words like “yes” and “no.” While one might think this would be easier for a court reporter to record, stenographs do not contain shorthand notation for these sounds. If your witness uses these sounds, ask for clarification so everything is accurately recorded.