All posts by upwardengine

Training and Equipment for Court Reporters

May 3, 2018Blog, Depositionupwardengine

Training and Equipment for Court Reporters

At Phoenix Deposition Services, we’re proud to provide realtime court reporting software to allow live access to reporting during a given deposition. This service comes after traning and equipment for court reporters is provided..

Part of our high-quality service comes from the expertise of our certified court reporters. What is the training required to get this kind of position, and what equipment is used for accurate and speedy transcription? Here are some basics.

Training

To become a licensed court reporter, one must attend a certified court reporting school accredited by the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA). The courses for this usually take around three years on average, with applicants required to have a high school diploma or GED to enroll. In some cases, these schools will have additional entry requirements like keyboarding or data entry.

Classes will run through a range of machine shorthand, keyboarding, legal terminology, court vocabulary, proofreading, reporting, ethics and more. Students will be required to take speed building classes and will practice with the stenotype – 225 words per minute is the minimum requirement in most cases.

When students graduate, they receive a Registered Professional Reporter certificate from the NCRA. They will also need a Certified Shorthand Reporter license, for which the requirements vary by state.

Stenotype

The most common piece of equipment for a court reporter is the stenotype machine, which uses a concept of keys pressed simultaneously to quickly create words and phrases. A stenotype has 22 unmarked keys that look something like a piano – the keys represent parts of the alphabet, and students learn how various combinations or “codes” will produce different sounds.

In the past, this information would roll out on steno paper. Today, it’s more common for the readout here to be digital. There can be a laptop connected to the stenotype to produce captions for any hearing-impaired people present, and if needed, digital copies of the report can be translated into another language.

For more on the training and equipment used by court reporters, or to learn about any of our Phoenix, AZ court reporters, speak to the pros at Phoenix Deposition Services today.

Legal Assistants and The Deposition

April 25, 2018Blog, Generalupwardengine

This article is about legal assistants and the deposition tips we can provide to assist in the legal community.

Legal Assistants and the Deposition

Before the Deposition

Legal assistants will want to prepare for the following things.

Determine where the deposition will be taking place and that it is suitable for the demands of the day.
Verify the lighting is adequate and that there is an appropriate amount of space and seating available. Also that there are photocopying and wifi available.
Contact the court reporting firm and arrange for any changes in time or venue that may have come up, any videography services that are needed and local or remote realtime connections are available.
If the case is technical, give the court reporter a list of case-specific terms to program into their stenotype job dictionary.

Time of Deposition

Be sure to introduce yourself to the videographer and court reporter and remember to provide all interested parties with a business card.
If there are exhibits that need pre-marked before going on the record, be sure to provide these to the court reporter.
Go over a few of the Do’s and Don’ts and remind the witness of how to be a rockstar during questioning.

Before You Leave

Consult with the court reporter and be sure they have everything they need such as all of the needed spellings.
Verify the delivery time of the final transcript and synced video.
Verify who exactly will be in charge of retaining the exhibits.
See if your court reporter has time to quickly clean up the rough draft while he is still connected to his/her realtime feed.

We hoped you have found this article enjoyable and informative. If you are looking for Phoenix court reporters for your deposition, contact our office or call us today to schedule a deposition with us.

Exhibeo For Attorneys

April 5, 2018Blog, Generalupwardengine

Exhibeo for attorneys is the subject of this week’s blog. Attorneys are responsible for the collecting, organizing, and maintenance of files for a deposition. In addition, they have to ensure this information is available when it is needed. Historically this entails spending a fortune on shipping or having to haul large, heavy boxes wherever they need to go. Exhibeo is making the lives of paralegals and legal secretaries easier worldwide.

Exhibeo saves time, effort and tons of money, including the cost of manpower. Its security features are one of the attractive capabilities of this product. You can relax knowing that all of your files are secure, uploading all the documents you want up to 300,000 onto your drive, then being able to recall by the keyword search. Nothing is held in the cloud, removing the vulnerability of potential hacks. Another added benefit is the level of preparedness with all of your files being portable. Being able to search and share your documents once you save them is a game-changing feature, whereas now you can find exactly what you’re looking for by searching with exact quotes instead of reading line by line. Once saved you can distribute the documents to all parties using Exhibeo’s closed and secure network. So if you are preparing for an all-day deposition for multiple parties and want to save the dreaded cost and labor that goes with the previous method, then we encourage you to check out this new and innovative tool for paralegals, attorneys, and legal secretaries.

Phoenix Deposition Services hope you enjoyed this week’s blog and continue to read throughout the future. If you’re looking for the very best in Phoenix court reporters, look no further and contact us either by phone (602) 230-2499 or by visiting our website to schedule your deposition or video deposition today.

Common Basic Deposition Questions

March 3, 2018Blog, Depositionupwardengine

At Phoenix Deposition Services, we’re proud to provide court reporting and numerous other services that allow attorneys to have a great idea of testimony in advance. In today’s blog, we will be writing about common deposition questions.

We’re also here to provide basic expertise as well, however. A deposition is a period used to gather pretrial information and discover what a witness does or doesn’t know about a given case – here are some of the standard questions that will come in a deposition.

Introductory Questions

Introductory questions are in place first to put the witness at ease, and second to help keep them honest later during the trial. Common questions here will include:

You understand you are under sworn oath and must tell the truth?
Have you had a deposition taken in the past?
Are you prepared to answer questions and nothing will prevent you from giving your full attention?
Will you let me know if you don’t understand any of my questions?
Will you let me know if you need a break?
Are you taking any medications that could interrupt our session in any way?

Background Questions

Once introductory questions are finished, the attorney will move to specific personal background questions. These include five separate categories:

Identification: Things like your name, nicknames, date of birth, age, and social security number.
Marital history: Whether you’ve been married, spousal information, whether you have children, etc.
Residential history: Current address, previous addresses, length of tenancy, reasons for moving, and who lived with you.
Education: What level you attained, what schools you attend(ed), what degrees you hold or are working on.
Legal history: Whether you’ve been arrested in the past or convicted of a crime, why, what penalty you paid, and whether you’ve been involved in any other legal claims or lawsuits.

Deposition Preparation Questions

In addition, the deposing attorney is allowed to ask the witness about how they prepared for the deposition itself. Questions here may include:

How did you prepare?
Did you speak to anyone besides your attorney? If so, who and why?
What did you discuss during deposition preparation?
What documents pertaining to the case have you reviewed?
Did you meet with counsel for the opposing side prior to the deposition?
Have you spoken with or signed any agreements with reporters regarding this case?

For more on the basics of a deposition speak to the pros at Phoenix Deposition Services today.

Video Deposition Tactics

February 19, 2018Blog, Depositionvideo deposition, witness testimonyupwardengine

These Are A Few Video Deposition Tactics

This blog will introduce a few video deposition tactics we have seen used in court or other legal proceedings.

1. Impeaching a Witness

Impeaching a witness during a trial is a game changer. Attorneys can take advantage of this powerful technology to turn the tables in their case. By comparing the answers from a statement made during a video deposition to the statements made in court, you are more likely to catch the witness in a lie or notice any inconsistencies in their testimony.

2. Getting Clients Prepared for Trial

In the preparation for trial comes the responsibility of assessing whether or not to use a witness or if their testimony will be beneficial to your case. Video depositions are a valuable tool when used to view the actions and attitude of the deponent. Will they be nervous or difficult to crack? The more you work with clients beforehand the more they will understand about the video deposition process. Therefore it is imperative you take the time to work with them.

3. Viewing of Physical Evidence

Let’s say that the witness is asked to hold or handle a particular piece of evidence at a deposition. The benefit of video is that the judge, as well as the jury, can view it for themselves instead of hearing what is happening from a paper transcript being read out loud. The visual component is an excellent source of information and powerful tool many attorneys use every day when making preparations for trial.

4. One at a Time Please

Be sure to only take one person’s statement at a time. This means less confusion and fewer people trying to talk at one time. There will also be less noise and fewer disruptions. The number one thing you can do to throw off the flow of an attorneys line of questioning is interrupting to clarify who is saying what for the record.

Call us today to gain the competitive advantage and to better serve your client through our professional and affordable video depositions.

How To Avoid Disaster During A Deposition

February 4, 2018Blog, Generalupwardengine

How to avoid disaster during a deposition is the topic of this week’s article and it is intended to help the less experienced witnesses, attorneys and court reporters in the legal field.

Speak Loud Enough for Everyone to Hear You Clearly

As a court reporter, we are often lost in the background or forgotten about, so it is not uncommon for a witness or attorney to speak where they can be heard clearly by the court reporter. Speak up and remember that no matter how clever your questions are they will, in fact, end up as “inaudible” in the transcript. Court reporters are at times reluctant to interrupt the proceedings to ask an attorney or a witness to increase the volume of their voice more than once. The last thing a court reporter wants is to interrupt an attorney’s train of thought; however, it is our job above all to preserve the record, so remember, if you want it in the record, speak clearly and speak loud enough for everyone to hear you.

If asked to read don’t speed

When put on the spot and asked to read from a specific written document, sometimes people can end up flying through it and mumbling or jamming their words together. Our advice is to take a breath and enunciate when reading a written document. Another way to assist your court reporter is to provide a copy of any written documents that someone will read out loud so they can later check their notes in comparison.

Try to Remember Shop Talk Can be Difficult to Transcribe

I think every profession may have their own personal words and lingo for special terms specific to their field, but court reporters are not aware of all terms used by expert witnesses or attorneys in large or complicated medical malpractice cases and can get thrown off because of this.

Put It On Paper

Many things are lost when transitioning to paper, like body language or gestures that cannot be recorded unless doing a video deposition. Using a phrase like “let the record show” allows clarification of gestures made. The NCRA’s brochure Making The Record suggest this will “ensure a clean record.”

We thank you for reading our article this week, and remember, if you are in need of highly skilled court reporters in Phoenix, AZ, call us today or schedule directly from our website.

Tips For A Successful Deposition

December 30, 2017Blog, Depositionupwardengine

A successful deposition has many important contributing factors. This article is intended to inform our audience of a few tips to get you started on your path to victory.

1. Honesty is the best policy

It’s a no-brainer that lying when under oath is the quickest way to destroy your case. Even exaggerating, downplaying or guessing can be a huge threat to your side winning the day. A skilled attorney can weave around the truth but a lie can destroy your credibility on every aspect of your case. Even if you are nervous or are having trouble recalling the answer to a question, tell the truth!

2. Be polite and respectful

A successful deposition can be a useful tool when gauging what kind of a witness you are going to have on the stand. Attorneys often read what kind of a witness the jury will see you as at this time. Be aware that if you are defensive and anger easily, the jury is not likely to side in your favor nor take you at your word when testifying. Being kind, honest and polite goes a long way in your favor, so remember, the more they like you, the better chance you will have a favorable outcome.

3. Think before you speak

Being recorded and asked questions under oath can bring about a serious case of nerves. Don’t answer any questions if you are not sure of the answer and don’t answer questions you are not qualified to answer. These tactics are used to weaken the credibility of a witness. If they can get you stumbling on your words or upset, the less likely you will appear to be telling the truth. There are many psychological elements at play during a deposition, so anything you are not well versed on, go over again with your attorney. Remember, the more prepared you are the less likely they are to successfully discredit your testimony.

If you are looking for expert court reporting, contact us at www.phoenixdepositionservices.com

6 Life Hacks Attorneys Can Use

November 30, 2017Blog, Generalupwardengine

6 Life Hacks Attorneys Can Use

6 life hacks attorneys can use are useful tips and tricks to improve the efficiency of daily tasks at work. We know the busy day in the life of attorneys can be stressful and daunting, so we came up with this blog to help lighten the load and save a little time.

1. Take advantage of Google Voice to be your electronic receptionist.

Google Voice is a free Internet-based calling service. It is a wonderful supplement to your existing landline or mobile phone. One of the most popular features is being able to give out one number to clients that will ring to all of your phones (work, home and mobile), or none at all, depending on when you set your time of availability. This makes it much easier to quickly return calls to prospective new clients or anyone that needs to contact you that requires speedy response. Google Voice has several other useful features, like an online voicemail account that sends transcriptions of voice messages to your Gmail account, conference calling, free SMS to email messages and so much more.

2. Set your clocks everywhere 10 minutes fast.

This one is a common sense, no-brainer we really don’t have to elaborate on. Get up early, out the door early, arrive early and you just may find time to catch your breath somewhere in the day.

3. Adequate case management software.

SaasCase.com, for example, offers numerous benefits that will drastically increase your productivity. Included in its features are, case-to-case scrolling, easy collaboration with colleagues, fast case opening, quick tracking of case progress and much more.

4. Upload important documents to your cloud storage.

Whether you use Google Drive or Apple’s iCloud, having your passport size photos, birth certificates, and signatures in one place makes it easy to access anyplace, any time.

5. Tackle your most challenging task at the beginning of your day.

At the beginning of the day we are an unstoppable force to be reckoned with but by the end of the day you don’t want or need any extra energy-draining challenges.

6. Take some time to yourself to do something you want to do

Like read 6 life hacks for attorneys, a little yoga or meditation even, the point being, do something that you want to do, not just what is required of you in the day.

We hope you enjoyed our useful tips and return to read next week’s blog. If you are looking for outstanding Phoenix court reporters, then please visit our website.

Digital Recorders Or Court Reporters?

November 20, 2017Blog, Court Reporting, Deposition, Generalcourt reporter, court reporting, witness testimonyupwardengine

Digital recorders or Court Reporters

Digital recorders have been a very controversial topic in the legal community. Our blog this week will go over a few reasons why hiring a court reporter is the right choice for an accurate transcript.

How are court reporters superior to the use of digital recording devices?

Court reporters capture only the words that are spoken and relevant to the specific proceedings, whereas digital recorders often record everything, including the noise from shuffling papers, various audible interference and private conversations between attorney and client.
Court reporters can stop the proceedings for clarification and read back when necessary.
Court reporters can easily read back requested testimony in a matter of seconds, whereas audio recordings all depend on the operator’s ability to properly annotate the proceedings. In addition, many attorneys and judges prefer not to listen to the entire length of the recording.
Court reporters working in realtime allow for annotations. In addition, the words appear on the users’ screens seconds after they are spoken.
Court reporters are professionals, specially trained and state licensed
Court reporters personally purchase and maintain all required equipment and software.
Audio recordings do not allow judges or attorneys to do research during a proceeding; however ,when using realtime they can annotate during the proceedings as well as organize their marked testimony. The court reporter will also be using software that will make it possible to cut and paste. The court reporter’s notes can be put on a screen or printed out in a report.
Audio recordings still require transcription in most cases.
Audio Recordings have upfront costs for equipment acquisition.
Audio recordings require ongoing costs to the court for purchasing and maintaining equipment and upgrading software.
Audio recordings have instances of incomplete, inaudible and unintelligible recordings.

If you found this blog informative or helpful, please feel free to visit our blog page to learn more about what we do here at Phoenix Deposition Services. If you’re looking for the very best in Phoenix court reporting, look no further than our Phoenix court reporters to get the job done.