EXPECT MORE

A court reporting firm's mission should be finding the best reporter to cover your work, not trying to keep it all "in-house," perhaps at your expense.

The reporter, not the technology, produces great realtime!
Lately, it seems court reporting firms want to be your one-stop shop for everything from court reporting to videography and beyond ... and some do a great job at that! But all the technology in the world can't make up for an unskilled reporter sitting in the realtime chair.

Newsflash: The days of court reporters working for just one firm are history!
While many reporting firms have staff reporters who work exclusively for them, the days of reporters being associated with just one firm are history, especially for a skilled realtime reporter. I don't believe in lowering the bar, and I don't believe in keeping a job in-house when a competent independent freelance reporter can be engaged with one phone call.

Nowhere is a reporter's competence, or lack thereof, more instantly obvious than when they're writing realtime.
Have you been told by reporting firms that rough drafts are supposed to be "dirty" and hard to read because they're unedited, unproofread and uncertified? Have you wondered why someone would want to charge you for those things? Me too ...

It's a fact: The majority of court reporters in the country are independent contractors. When a reporting firm needs coverage, near or far, they may call another reporting firm participating in a mutual referral network - kind of a "you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours" arrangement. But you want the best reporter for the job, not the next one on the list!

Court reporting firms can go straight to the independent reporter. When an independent freelancer accepts a job from a reporting firm, they agree to work "under their cover," which means that the reporter is "representing" that reporting firm. The reporter may even present a card that states they are "with" the firm. And in a way, they are - for that day! Reporting firms may want you to think they have their own reporters all over the country, but it doesn't work quite that way.

Court reporting firms are never limited to the reporters they have on staff.
It doesn't take long for a reporter's reputation to become well known in the reporting community, especially the top-notch realtime writers who consistently deliver what they promise with no excuses!