New York Court Reporters Blog

Toby Feldman Inc is a court reporter firm located in New York City. We are known as a freelance firm specializing in corporate litigation. That means that our New York and nationwide court reporters court report on cases mainly dealing with two corporations litigating against each other as opposed to court reporter agencies which do other types of litigation such as maritime, negligence and government. Those would be the three largest groups in the freelance court reporter firms. Our court reporters also report meetings, arbitrations and hearings. Our clients are both small and large law firms, corporations, banks, and government agencies. Many court reporting agencies also do contract work with insurance companies. We do not do any type of contracting work. There is also a division in the court reporting industry between firms who work under contracts and those that don’t. There are also court reporter firms who do contracts with large corporations. These are usually the same court reporting companies that do contracts with insurance companies. There are also court reporter companies that bid on government contracts. Most students graduating from court reporting school are not aware of the many different types of work available in the court reporting industy.

New York court reporters have seen major changes in the way they prepare transcripts in the last 30 years. New York court reporters 30 years ago prepared transcripts on typewriters, using carbon paper. Court reporters had two ways of reproducing their paper notes. Some court reporters in New York dictated their notes in a stenorette machine which produced tapes which then went to a typist to type the court reporter’s tapes. The court reporter then proofread the transcript and corrections were made on the typewriter using whiteout or correction paper. Court reporters whose paper notes were of a high quality were able to employ note readers, a person who would type directly from the court reporter’s notes. New York court reporters usually had their favorite note reader who over a period of time become very used to the way a particular court reporter wrote. New York court reporters were more fortunate than court reporters in other parts of the country because there were court reporting schools in New York City and many court reporting students in New York City did not finish the court reporting course but became note readers for court reporters instead. When a large transcript had to be produced in a short period of time, the court reporter’s notes would be broken up between two or more typists. Court reporters in New York City were fortunate to have a large pool of typists available to them to produce quick turnaround in their work product.

There are many different court reporter firms in New York ranging in size from very small, operated from one’s home, with a small client base, to the very large nationwide firms which have come into existence through many acquisitions over the last 10 years. All the different-sized firms generally have one thing in common, they tend to gravitate towards a certain type of court reporting. These different types of court reporting are a function of the court reporting agency’s clients. Firm owners tend to go for a certain type of work, whether it be medical, government contracts, insurance companies, large Wall Street firms, maritime, patent & trademark, securities, etc. Court reporting companies also differ greatly in what they require from their reporters as well as the pay scales. Generally speaking, the more difficult the work, the more experienced the reporter needed, and, therefore, the higher the rate. There is also a great difference in pay scales in different areas, driven by cost-of-living factors. New York court reporters tend to be among the highest paid in the country. Of course, New York City is also one of the most expensive places to live in. New York court reporters have an extremely large choice of what type of work they want. There are always excellent opportunities for court reporters with all levels of skills. Our depositions tend to be on the more difficult side and, therefore, we look for a certain set of skills. We are always available to help new reporters and many of our staff reporters started with our court reporting firm right out of school. We work closely with our new reporters and give very in-depth hands-on training. We have also spoken at the schools to court reporting students. In conclusion, there are always positions available nationwide for competent court reporters. No matter where you start or where you end up, you will always have many excellent job opportunities.

Court reporters can work in New York in all the various fields of court reporting. They are all available in New York City. The different areas are official court reporters in the federal, state or city courts located in New York. Court reporting in one of the various courts usually involves taking a test. Upon passing the test, in many courts, you are hired on a temporary basis. The benefits are usually the same as a permanent employee. The only difference being a temporary employee can be laid off and a permanent hire has their court reporting position forever.

Certified Court Reporters, CSR, designates a court reporter who has passed the certified court reporter exam given by the state where they live. If you are a certified court reporter, it means you have passed a test which tests both your machine skills and English skills. Some states, such as California, have CSR laws which require a court reporter to have passed the CSR exam to take a deposition. Some states which require passing the CSR exam to work as a deposition reporter will still allow a court reporter to take meetings without passing the exam. Each state has its own certified court reporter requirements and usually the states do not recognize CSR certifications from other states. When a court reporter is interested in relocating to a different state, it is very important that the court reporter check that state’s CSR law. The number of times a year the test is given will vary from state to state as well as the qualifications required to take the exam. Court reporters who have passed the CSR exam have reached a certain level of expertise in their profession. Please visit our website tobyfeldman.com to learn more about court reporting and court reporters.

Most court reporting firms have clients who do a specific type of work. For example, some court reporting firms bid on government contracts so that their work may mostly be related to their contract work. Other court reporting firms have contracts with insurance carriers and their work will be related to the type of litigation that their carrier does. For example, some insurance companies represent the contruction industry, others medical doctors, and also dentists. Many court reporters choose the court reporting firm they work with based on the type of court reporting work a particular court reporting firm has. There are also court reporting firms who do work mostly for plaintiff firms and those court reporting firms which do work mostly for defendant firms. Some court reporting firms have some type of agreement with banks. For every type of industry, there are court reporting firms supplying services to the law firms who represent the companies in that industry. Please visit our website tobyfeldman.com to learn more about court reporting firms and their clients.

Court reporting agencies have evolved over the years to provide a variety of different services. Court reporting agencies 20 years ago did not have the technologies available today so the court reporting agencies of the past did not provide video depositions, video synchronization, scanned exhibits, and many other services tied into the new computer technologies. Court reporting agencies can also provide tape transcription services for law firms and the courts. Many courts over the past 10 years have installed recording devices. However, the courts in many areas do not employ staff to transcribe these tapes. In most cases, the tapes are not transcribed until somebody needs it and it is the attorney’s responsibility to order the transcription of the tapes. Sometimes even court reporters will transcribe tapes. Tape transcription can be done at home. Court reporting agencies can also arrange for interpreters or can direct an attorney to an interpreting service. Many court reporting agencies will serve subpoenas. Other court reporting agencies will recommend a company to serve subpoena. Court reporting agencies have a large number of services they can provide which go far beyond just court reporting. Please visit our website tobyfeldman.com to learn more about the variety of services beyond court reporting that court reporting agencies furnish.

There are court reporting firms located in every city in the United States. Court reporting firms often do a certain type of work, and the court reporters working in the court reporting firms become extremely well-versed in the type of court reporting work a particular court reporting firm has. For example, some court reporting firms take a lot of doctors’ depositions or medical depositions because they have a clientele that works in that area of the law or do work for insurance companies that are involved in that type of litigation. Other court reporting firms have government contracts which could be for grand jury work, government agencies such as the SEC or even the Senate committees use court reporters. A court reporter should inquire when they are seeking employment with a court reporting firm as to what type of work they do so they are able to work for a court reporting firm which has the type of work which interests them. Most court reporting firms have a variety of work but usually court reporting firms have a great percentage of a certain type of work. To get an idea of the types of depositions a court reporting firm has, please visit our website tobyfeldman.com which describes what type of work tobyfeldman.com does.

Court reporters in NY can work in many different parts of New York City. There is court reporting in New York’s five boroughs and also court reporting in New York’s suburbs which include Nassau County, Suffolk County and Westchester County. There are courts in each county which use court reporters. You can be a court reporter in New York County, a court reporter in Bronx County, a court reporter in Queens County, a court reporter in Staten Island, a court reporter in Brooklyn. A court reporter in New York County would work in a courthouse in Manhattan which is known as New York County. Each county in New York City has its own family courts as well as other New York City courts. Some of the courts within the New York City court system hire court reporters to work in the New York City courts. Some New York City courts do not use court reporters but use electronic recording devices. The tapes are then transcribed on an as-needed basis. Many court reporting firms and agencies in New York provide services to transcribe tapes. Please visit our website tobyfeldman.com to learn more about court reporting and tobyfeldman.com/index_newyork.htm to learn more about court reporting in New York.

There are many different types of court reporting in New York. There are freelance court reporters in New York and there are court reporters in New York who are employed by the courts in both permanent and temporary positions. There are also court reporters in New York who work for government agencies as distinguished from courtroom positions. Court reporters have many different opportunities to work in New York. New York court reporting agencies offer many different types of court reporting opportunities for different levels of court reporters. You do not have to become certified in New York to work as a court reporter in New York. You can apply for any type of court reporting job in New York without being certified. Please visit our website tobyfeldman.com and tobyfeldman.com/index_newyork.htm to learn more about the court reporting business and opportunities for court reporters in court reporting.