Now that I can hold still long enough to think about the implications of you being in contact again...
The court reporting job sounds really cool. I've been following one particularly drawn-out case for a few years now and after a recent trial there was a big to-do about raising funds to purchase copies of the transcripts. It always seemed like a black box issue -- the trial ends, the transcripts materialize by some unknown agency -- and now that there's someone I know working on them I'm very curious to know how it actually works.
What determines which cases you work on? Do you have a bunch of tape recorders running all at once? How do you decide where to put them? What do you do if something is just plain unintelligible? How do you check for accuracy when evidence and testimony are presented that rely heavily on technical jargon? What's the weirdest case you've seen to date?
(Do I sound like a 5-year-old with all these questions? Put it squarely on the back burner, of course.)
I'm glad to answer the questions!! I'm totally passionate about the job, so it's fun talking about it.
What determines which cases you work on?
This one's easy. The firm I work for (although technically I'm a contractor for them, not an employee) is a court reporting firm. Which means they have a stable of court reporters and the work comes to us. The office gets a call asking for a reporter for whichever procedure and then forwards all the pertinent information to whoever's up for the next job. We're generally on a rotating basis as to who's up for a job, but my bosses are very, very good about spreading around the "big" jobs where we can make a ton more money.
Anyway, we get the court summons, the serving papers and any other pertinent legal documentation, then we do some pre-proceeding set up by doing a bit of research on the attorneys, the plaintiff, defendant, etc., so when we actually show up at the proceeding, we have a decent idea of what's going on with the case and who the players are.
You're not someone I know very well but you were one of the first people to comment generously on my stories when I was new to all this. I still remember and appreciate that and the quality of your own wonderful writing.
It's great to hear from you again and congratulations for holding yourself together through all your difficulties. You must be a really strong person and I wish you the very best life has to offer from this day on.
I'm sorry things have been so tough for you, but I'm glad you're happy with the way things are working for you now. Maybe now the divorce is over, the wounds will have time to heal.
You know, the healing has already started. I'm not so naive as to think they're fully gone -- and there will always be scars -- but I think I'm definitely on the road to recovery. I truly believe in the adage about when one door closes, another opens. And in my case, the door closing on my marriage really opened many other doors for me. I didn't chose the divorce, but I've grown in ways I never would have otherwise, I'm convinced.
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The court reporting job sounds really cool. I've been following one particularly drawn-out case for a few years now and after a recent trial there was a big to-do about raising funds to purchase copies of the transcripts. It always seemed like a black box issue -- the trial ends, the transcripts materialize by some unknown agency -- and now that there's someone I know working on them I'm very curious to know how it actually works.
What determines which cases you work on? Do you have a bunch of tape recorders running all at once? How do you decide where to put them? What do you do if something is just plain unintelligible? How do you check for accuracy when evidence and testimony are presented that rely heavily on technical jargon? What's the weirdest case you've seen to date?
(Do I sound like a 5-year-old with all these questions? Put it squarely on the back burner, of course.)
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What determines which cases you work on?
This one's easy. The firm I work for (although technically I'm a contractor for them, not an employee) is a court reporting firm. Which means they have a stable of court reporters and the work comes to us. The office gets a call asking for a reporter for whichever procedure and then forwards all the pertinent information to whoever's up for the next job. We're generally on a rotating basis as to who's up for a job, but my bosses are very, very good about spreading around the "big" jobs where we can make a ton more money.
Anyway, we get the court summons, the serving papers and any other pertinent legal documentation, then we do some pre-proceeding set up by doing a bit of research on the attorneys, the plaintiff, defendant, etc., so when we actually show up at the proceeding, we have a decent idea of what's going on with the case and who the players are.
Do you have a bunch of tape ( ... )
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It's great to hear from you again and congratulations for holding yourself together through all your difficulties. You must be a really strong person and I wish you the very best life has to offer from this day on.
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And hey, speaking of fic, I have had quite a bit of yours recced to me! I can't wait to read!
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I'm so glad that things are turning for the better for you. And you're doing fantastic, absolutely fantastic.
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*hugs*
Hope you're doing well, too!
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