This is a tricky one to post, but here goes...

When you hear a witness say a word and you know he/she was meaning to say another, what do you do? Example: "ax" for ask, "messican" for mexican, "rockweiller" for rotweiller, "lawd" for lord, "no content" for no contest, etc., etc., and the list goes on and on... In instances like these, the reporter can be the one who looks incompetent if the transcript reads the way the wit says the word. But if we are truly supposed to be writing verbatim… Continue

For those of you working as deposition reporters, would you be so kind as to give me the exact wording on the oath that you give to witnesses? Is there a standard oath? Is it okay to use your own wording as long as certain specific words are there? Working in court for my entire reporting career, the Clerk swears in all witnesses, so I've never had the "honor" of doing it. BTW I am a p/t instructor at a court reporting school, and your answers will benefit future court… Continue

I am seeking advice from anyone with experience running a deposition agency on how I would go about starting my own. I was a Los Angeles Superior Court Reporter for 15 years, so I don't have actual hands-on experience with depositions. ANY advice would be greatly appreciated!!!