Lawyers’ lack of fundamental understanding of new legal technologies will soon put them at a disadvantage if they don’t change their ways, according to experts speaking a recent ABA conference. The group, which spoke on a panel last week at the ABA’s National Conference on Professional Responsibility in Vancouver, Canada, emphasized that legal tech is only becoming more pervasive in... Read More
Some attorneys have a tendency to think of artificial intelligence (AI) as something akin to cellphones in the 1980s or computers in the 1970s. That is to say, expensive enough that only the law firms or legal departments with the deepest pockets can tap into its nebulous potential. But AI is far from a mysterious or inaccessible innovation. For years, it has powered... Read More
A new law requires the military to make audio the official record and to make it more widely available to attorneys in a case once a trial is concluded, as well as to those taking part in deliberations, according to Capt. Matt Beran, director of technology, operations and plans for the Navy’s Office of Judge Advocate General. The use of the... Read More
Courtrooms across the state of South Carolina are going digital. New digital court reporters are being installed to make up for the shortage in the state’s court reporters. The new digital court reporter devices are state-funded and will be used as another tool for the record. In the 2019 state budget, the state has allocated $1 million to expand the pilot program... Read More
Iowa wants to firmly yank its court system into the 21st century. In his annual Condition of the Judiciary address last month, Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Cady pushed for a series of technology investments. Cady told lawmakers that technology is “propelling courts into a new age of justice,” and he announced several new digital initiatives, including an online dispute resolution system... Read More
Study found court reporters in Philadelphia regularly made errors in transcribing sentences that were spoken in a dialect that linguists term African-American English. Researchers played audio recordings of a series of sentences spoken in African-American English and asked 27 stenographers who work in courthouses in Philadelphia to transcribe them. On average, the reporters made errors in two out of every five... Read More
In Kansas, Illinois, South Carolina and Florida, the shortage of court reporters has led to delays of court proceedings. And while court reporters in Mississippi say there is a shortage here, too, it has not yet reached that point. There are total of 301 licensed court reporters currently working in the state. Source: Slim Smith, The Commercial Dispatch (01/12/2018), ‘A court reporter... Read More
Every courthouse in the State of Wisconsin will eventually see a change in how proceedings are recorded. Wisconsin Courts are installing more audio recording systems that can be used in place of a court reporter. “I don’t know if I’d say it’s ideal, it’s just going to be a different way of reporting,” said Oneida County Circuit Court Clerk Brenda... Read More
A shortage of court reporters in South Carolina continues to cause court delays throughout the state, costing taxpayers time and money. Ginny Jones, the public information director for the South Carolina Judicial Department, said in a recent email that 36 of the 130 court reporter positions in the state’s family and circuit courts remain open. However, some court reporters in the... Read More
A shortage of court reporters in Texas could spell delays for the more than 3,300 judges and their courtrooms across the state. Court reporters, or stenographers, are in short supply, according to the Texas Court Reporters Association (TCRA). The lack of qualified record-keepers is “very real.” Depositions and hearings may have to be delayed or rescheduled. “It delays the justice system... Read More