Day in the Life of a Court Reporter Working From Home!
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- čas přidán 20. 08. 2024
- Day in the Life of a Court Reporter Working From Home!
I've been wanting to film another day in the life video for a while now, and I finally got around to it!
I feel like the work from home style is not very exciting, but hopefully this video was at least mildly interesting.
I hope you enjoy watching.
Please give it a like and subscribe for more videos.
See you next time!
I love these day in the life videos! I am currently a CR student, and as far as "real life" and working as a reporter goes i am really clueless, so these videos really are so helpful and informative ! I also plan to work in NYC as soon as I am able to as a freelancer. I'm also vegan so I really love all of your videos please keep making these!
Hi there - thanks so much for your comment! How is school going for you so far? I'm excited for you!!
I had no idea what I was doing when I first started either! It's an adjustment for sure, but you'll catch on quickly :)
I'm glad you like these videos. I thought they might be a little boring because I can't really talk about the cases and it pretty much looks the same every day lol. I'll have another one soon :)
You are a future hero. Because of the records you will take so many children will have their day their life saved. Thank you and God bless you you are beautiful
@@okaycat12 Thank you!! I'm really enjoying school and eager to be able to work! I am in speed building right now, at about 100 WPM. The videos are great and not boring at all please keep them coming !! (not sure if you have posted more since this but I am about to look!!) :)
I love them as well and this one was really good! I am working reporter and just started a new CZcams channel with similar content. Check me out when you get a chance. I will be posting more steno-related content soon! JayKim Love is my CZcams channel!
Here to see if this might be for me and the dress over pajama pants had me immediately. XD Thanks for making these videos it helps a lot and is appreciated!
I came here to THANK a court reporter to say you are the silent Heroes you save our children you save the victims. Without you were record we would have nothing
I totally agree! I am working reporter as well and just started a new CZcams channel with similar content. Check me out when you get a chance. I will be posting more steno-related content soon! JayKim Love is my CZcams channel!
Your cat is soooooo cute. Love the video, helps to stay motivated to practice and get done with school!
I'm super biased lol but I think she's the cutest!!! Thank you for watching and yes, practice, practice, practice!! Good luck to you on your journey :)
It is really interesting and pretty cool that even with all the text to speech and everything- when stuff went to zoom they still stuck with what we know works and that you can do it from home- the same way they do the rest of the hearing!
Lol the dramatic reenactment was funny.
It was awesome. XD
Thank you for posting! And thank you for posting your work from home setup. I have bought the cables to split the audio and so I can use headphones. I’m hoping it’ll be better quality than my current situation 😁😁😁
Oh I hope it helps you! I've been seeing some awesome high tech looking work from home setups that are making me want to upgrade lol. I hope you're having a happy Thanksgiving!
Hi there! Would you say court reporting is relatively a low stress high paying profession? Like are you able to work flexibly whilst also making time for your own life? Thank you!
Hi there - thank you for your comment.
This is a really interesting question. I've been thinking about it for a while now and I'm still not really sure how to answer! I guess yes and no would be my answer. I have personally found myself to be pretty stressed in this career. There are a lot of deadlines, a lot of long nights and weekends catching up on transcripts, a lot of stressful situations with being unable to hear or understand people -- the list goes on. Perhaps someone who is extremely proficient at time management may be less stressed in this career.
I have personally tried to mitigate the stress by taking jobs less often, only three or four days a week. But of course that means I make less money.
That being said, I have also been able to take multiple vacations per year. I can take off whenever I want; I just won't get paid. I also take three-day weekends pretty regularly, whether it's to relax, travel, or just catch up on work.
I hope this answers your question!!
@@okaycat12 Great response! I’m currently in a CR program and I was curious about this too, thanks.
You are the jazz musicians of the courtroom....
Thanks for sharing your yummy vegan lasagne, too... Impossible Meat looks sooo good!!!
Hi - Thank you for your comment!! Impossible meat is really tasty. I want this lasagna again right now!!!
so much coffee pouring😂
A great video always start off with coffee
I'm so glad you agree 😆☕
I'm in Minnesota and I'm thinking about doing CR classes. I'm worried that at the age of 31, I will be "old" compared to the young people that will also be graduating. Anyways, I'm wondering what state you're in and if you're considered a freelancer or if you're a state employee. I'm a bit concerned about benefits as I need health insurance and I currently have great benefits through my job.
Don't even worry about your age!! I finished my program when I was 28 and many people in the program were nontraditional as well. I'm in New York and I am a freelancer, so I do have to source my own health insurance and there are no benefits. If you want to work in the courts, you would be an employee and I hear they also have great benefits. There are pros and cons to both paths of course. I love being a freelancer and have no desire to go to the courts. I hope this helps!
Your cat is so beautiful !
Isn't she the cutest?! I may be slightly biased ;)
Looks like my lil old diamante writer 😊
Ok if I understand correctly, if I want to be able to work remotely 100%, I can only work on depositions and NOT the actual court proceedings?
How long have you been working as a court reporter? :)
Only two years! It's a rather new career change for me :)
@@okaycat12 How exciting! Congrats!
How and what do you research for a job? I'm confused with how court reporters do that for a depo.
Hi - thank you for your question!
I am given the case number or case name in advance of the deposition, so I will just do a search online with that info. There are usually public documents available online for each case, such as the complaint and response.
I like to get a general idea of what type of case it is, like a car accident or workers' comp or whatever it may be. I also like to get attorney names and law firms so I know who to expect at the deposition. Sometimes I will be able to find additional info, like the date and location of the accident or what injuries they are claiming or names of doctors and things like that. This helps me prepare mentally, and I can also create any briefs I think I need in advance also.
All of that being said, sometimes I have to go into a job completely blind with no information whatsoever, and that's fine too! When we were doing in-person depositions, I would say like 70 percent of the time I would be going in blind. It's just nice to be able to prepare if possible.
I hope this answers your question!
@@okaycat12 so there’s a court website or something that shows these details in advance? Or are you talking about news articles?
Hi - Yes, I'm talking about the court website. If you search "(your state) court case search" on Google, the website will probably pop up as the first result. Hope this helps!
How did you get into court reporting and what were the upstart costs? It looks very interesting but I’m wondering if people have to pay for classes for this and do they have to buy their own stenograph to learn or what.
I’m currently getting into proofreading transcripts because I know I can be good at that. I purchased Morson’s English guide, Margie’s grammar book, and Gregg’s reference manual, but I really like touch typing and seeing how the stenograph works, that looks like fun to me.
Hi there! I completed an online program with a traditional school, Alfred State. It was a five semester program. You do also need to purchase or rent a student steno machine to learn, and there is also the software that you would need to purchase. Once you complete school, you need to buy a professional machine and software, which is more expensive. I think most of them have payment plans available because it is kind of a big buy in.
I would recommend you check out NCRA's free intro program, A to Z, to see if it's a good fit before you commit to anything. I hope this helps!!
@@okaycat12 Thanks for responding. Wow, so you actually completed the program online/remote? Did the classes go along like a regular school year schedule? Or were the classes on-demand?
I have another question about proofreaders. Do you personally pay them? Or are they paid per transcript through the NCRA?
How did you go about finding proofreaders? Have you stuck with the same one?
Also, is court reporting a remote job now? Or do you think in the future you'll have to go back to being in the courtroom?
Are you a reporter in MI? I see that you are transcribing and digits reporting.
Do you have any advice for transcribing and staying organized as a reporter?
Could you please share what Dell laptop you use? Thank you
Hello - the Dell is a G5. I bought it to play games on last summer lol. I've since been using it to work on because the screen is nice and big, but it's definitely a stay-at- home computer. It's way too big and heavy to come with me for in-person jobs.
@@okaycat12 thanks so much for your respond!
Do you sometime get confused when you type on the normal keyboard? I'm just curious 😅
Yes this definitely happens to me sometimes! Especially if I have a long day typing on my steno writer lol
i dont understand i have read some articles about being a court reporter and they say is super stressful and comjplicated and i see that you are taking it super easy XDD i dont know who to beliveXDD
The articles you are reading are probably about court reporters who work in actual courtrooms who have to be there 9 to 5 Monday through Friday and do trials all day. I'm a freelancer, so I only do depositions and have a somewhat flexible schedule. I love my job. It is still stressful at times but I'm sure it's nothing compared to working in the courts!!
Hi great video : ) Do you get paid at all if its cancelled like that? JW Thanks!
OMW then no one ordered a transcript on your next one?? IS that also less pay?
Hi Mary - thank you for your question 😊
I get paid per page of a transcript order.
In a situation where the job cancels at the last minute or busts because someone doesn't show up, I do still get paid for my appearance.
In the situation where no one orders a transcript, I get paid for my appearance only. Thankfully this one is rare. That was the first and only time that has happened to me!!
Okay awesome. Thanks so much. I have an interview in an hour and now instead of asking them I'm going to sound like I know what I'm taking about. You are really helping ppl full in the gaps about this job. You rock!!!!!!!!! 🤘 Thank you so much 💟
Ahh I hope your interview went well!!! That's so exciting!
I had literally no clue about this career or any of the details before I started, so I'm glad I can help in some way :)
@@okaycat12 Thank you!!! I got the second interview. I'll be watching all your videos!
Hi. I came here after being offered to have half a digital court reporting paid for by a company. I'm looking into the costs of the classes and I'm getting different prices from different places. Is there any place you specifically recommend to look at?
Ahh I'm sorry I don't know the answer to this one! 😅 NCRA has a list of approved schools for court reporting, but I'm not sure if it's different for digital reporting.
I'm sorry this is not much help, but good luck to you anyway!
@@okaycat12 it's fine. Any little bit of information helps.
Two questions for you. a) if you have many last minute cancellations in a week, does that set you back financially a lot? I work in the legal field already and depos cancel all the time and I am always wondering if you even make enough money when a job cancels based on just the basic cancellation fee. b) I see you have a cat. Is he/she very vocal? My cat can be very vocal (especially during heat) and I am worried the attorneys could hear her. Are you usually muted during the proceeding and only un-mute if counsel is asking you to read something back?
Great questions! Cancelations definitely set me back financially in that I do not make as much, but I am always able to make up the difference. It really doesn't happen all that often where it is last minute and my agency doesn't have anything to replace it for me. As a freelancer, you can also work with multiple agencies to fill in any gaps if you want too. I personally haven't found that to be necessary, but there's always someone looking for a reporter. Ultimately, I do sometimes get "bad" paychecks, but other paychecks more than make up for it.
As for the cats, I do have one cat that is very vocal around dinnertime, but it has never been an issue. I am always on mute except for the beginning and the end of the deposition, and then on the fairly rare occasion where I need to ask for clarification or read something back. I also always wear headphones so I'm not distracted by the cats or my neighbors. People are very understanding on the Zoom depos anyway because almost everyone has something going on, whether it's cats, dogs, or kids. I've even had an attorney take a deposition with her pet birds tweeting away the entire time!!
Anyway, I hope this answers your questions!!
@@okaycat12 thank you so much for your input! It’s much appreciated
How do you cope with/ handle cases that have difficult/tragic circumstances?
Fortunately, I don't get cases like this very often at all as a newer reporter. If the witness is getting emotional, I try to look away and focus my eyes on something else and just let my ears hear the words and go straight to my fingers without letting my brain process the meaning, if that makes sense. In my experience, the attorneys are very understanding when there are sensitive subjects and will offer to take a break if the witness is upset, so that is helpful too. I hope this answers your question!
Does you cat ever jump on your keyboard while at work?
For some reason my cats are just not interested!! I guess I am lucky. I have had them meow loudly or puke like right next to me (ugh) or be otherwise annoying though 🤦♀️
Do you ever transcribe depositions that involve interesting topics such as in the cases of homicide or other violent crimes?
Hmm very rarely. Hopefully that's because it's not so common. Most common is probably car accidents and most interesting for me is medical malpractice.
Do you know how in demand these jobs are? Does it typically take a long time to find a job? Can the schooling be done online?
There is a huge demand for qualified court reporters right now. It shouldn't take any time at all to find a job. Agencies started reaching out to me before I even finished school! I should mention that the working from home aspect is covid related and I'm not sure how long it will last.
And yes, you can do the schooling online. Check NCRA's website for approved schools.
Hope this helps!
@@okaycat12 Thank you so much! Is there any way to prepare myself ahead of time, like any kind of practice typing or other skills?
@@megankissinger8269 You can check out NCRA's free A to Z program that will teach you the basics of the theory, which is great to see if it's a good fit for you. Other than that, you can try listening to depositions or trials online to get a feeling for the words they use that you may be unfamiliar with. Typing on a regular keyboard won't help too much, but expanding your vocabulary might!
How much is the pay
I want your lasagna...
Cute kitty! Is it he or she?
Yum I want the lasagna again now too, now that you mention it! The cat in this video is a girl :)
Hi I sweetheart I have an innocent question for you? I need some special guidelines from you. My question is can a person outside from Europe can apply for job for stenographer. Like from India or Pakistan If so so what would be criteria for his posstion stenographer. Or how he can apply would it consider a remote job please explain.
How much does this job usually pay an hour?
What is the best computer to get for a voice writer?
Can you guide us to become court reporter
Do you have to have fast typing skills like a traditional stenographer?
Hi there - I'm not sure what you mean by traditional stenographer, but I do write 225+ wpm in steno!
@@okaycat12 traditional stenographer like the old fashioned Court room typist. I'm interested in this career but I'm not a "fast typist".
I see. Yes, I do type like that in order to write depositions and hearings.
Another option in this field would be transcription work, where you can go at your own pace to type up a transcript of audio recorded proceedings (not live). There is also digital reporting, where you would be the one recording the audio of the proceedings to be typed up by someone else. There are also legal videographers who film and create certified videos of depositions. There are classes and certifications available for all of these, I believe.
I hope this helps!!
@@okaycat12 thank you
Oh, I forgot to mention voice writers! They also take live depositions, but they use a special microphone to dictate the proceedings with their voice instead of typing. Not all states and districts allow it, but worth looking into if you're interested.
Lol