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The US legal system is built on 4 key principles: rule of law, equal justice under the law, due process, the adversary system, presumed innocence. Impartiality is important to uphold those principles. This also applies to any officer or professional linked to the law, including a Boca Raton court reporter.
What does a Boca Raton court reporter Do?
At this stage, it might be worth detailing the highlights of what a Boca Raton court reporter does, as listed below:
- Capture every word said during court proceedings
- Act as “guardians of the record”
- Deliver unbiased transcripts
- Act as a public notary
Capture Court Proceedings
A Boca Raton court reporter is responsible for recording and transcribing everything that is said in court. They usually use a steno or stenotype machine to type everything out in shorthand. This allows the Boca Raton court reporter professionals to record things quickly.
Other Boca Raton court reporter professionals sometimes use a special microphone that covers their mouths so that no one can hear them talking into it. This allows them to talk into a voice-to-text machine that they can later amend and edit. Essentially, this avoids having to know shorthand.
Guardians of the Record
At times, during a court proceeding, a Boca Raton court reporter might be asked to read back what has just been said. This can help clarify certain points. Regardless, a Boca Raton court reporter is a licensed and certified professional. This means that they are the trusted central figure in charge of ensuring factual and unbiased written recordings.
Deliver Unbiased Transcripts
One of the key responsibilities of a Boca Raton court reporter is to provide copies of transcripts and recordings. They deliver these to the courts, counsels, and any other relevant party involved. A court reporter also often has to support public forums. In those cases, they then need to give real-time translations for deaf or hard-of-hearing people.
Act as Public Notary
A Boca Raton court reporter is also a public notary. In fact, they are a licensed and certified professional of the legal system. Although, there are some differences between states. As a notary, this means that they can administer oaths to witnesses. They also certify that their transcripts are verbatim of everything that happened during a proceeding. Many states also need them to be certified with the National Court Reporters Association.
Obligations of a Boca Raton court reporter
A Boca Raton court reporter has to honor the following:
- Never give personal views or suggestions
- Honor integrity of the legal profession
- Respect every litigant’s right to equal justice
- Obligated to record only words and not head movements
- Cannot go off the record until all parties agree
- Never offer outputs for review
Unbiased
It’s critical that a Boca Raton court reporter never includes personal views in their transcripts. Neither should they try to sway any court professional with suggestions. Not only is this a violation of the law but it would also be against ‘equal justice’.
Integrity
A Boca Raton court reporter is part of the legal profession. As such, they are ethically and legally bound to serve the best interests of the Bench, Bar, and public. As part of this, they are therefore responsible to follow the highest standards of best practice and impartiality so as not to disrupt court proceedings. Their official transcript helps protect the ethics behind all legal processes.
Equal Justice
Everyone deserves to be treated fairly and justly. Any mistake or bias on a Boca Raton court reporter’s transcript could potentially impair or annul a case. As an officer of the court, a Boca Raton court reporter has the duty to uphold the principles behind the legal system.
Record Words
A Boca Raton court reporter has to record only what has been verbally said. For example, if someone nods or shakes their head then this cannot be recorded. The lawyer in the process should ask for a verbal response that the Boca Raton court reporter can then transcribe.
No “Off the Record” Decision-Making
During court proceedings, there are sometimes moments when one of the parties wants to go off the record. Again, a Boca Raton court reporter can’t make any assumptions. They are therefore only allowed to stop writing until both parties agree to go off the record. In addition, the judge has to confirm this.
No Previews
It goes without saying that no one from the court can access the transcript before it has been given to everyone at the same time. There can be no favoritism as this could again annul the legality of the output. Unfortunately, a preview could risk tampering with the transcript.
Final Thoughts on Boca Raton court reporter Neutrality
Overall, a Boca Raton court reporter is an officer of the court. It’s therefore important for them to transcribe everything that is said both accurately and without bias. Any mistake could cost the case and also put the very values of the justice system at risk.
