, .
.,
United States District Court
for the
Western District of New York
Third Amended Plan for the
Management of Court Reporters
(Replacing the First and Second Amended Plans
adopted August 25, 1988 and June 2011, respectively )
. r
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
II. Appointment, Assignment, and Dismissal of Court Reporters .............. 1
A. General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
B. Probationary Appointment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
C. Assignment of Court Reporters . ................ .... ........... .3.
D. Duties or Conditions of Employment . ..................... ...... .3.
E. Hours of Attendance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ~
F. Availability of Reporter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ~
G. Job Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . §
H. Staff Reductions ........................................... §
I. Termination .............. . . . .............................. §
J. Retired or Separated Court Reporters' Responsibility to Provide Transcripts
.... ..... ................. ............................ .. §
K. Travel ............................ .. ... .... .... ... ..... . . §
Ill. Court Reporter Supervision ............ .. .... ................... ... §
A Supervisory Responsibilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . §
IV. Transcripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Z
A. General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Z
B. Arraignments, Pleas, and Sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . z
C. Court Reporter's Transcript Responsibilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8.
D. Routine Apportionment of Accelerated Transcript Rates ............ .8.
E. Transcript Format .... ... ............ ... .......... ..... ..... .8.
F. Inspection of Transcripts .. .. ..... .......... . .. ..... ..... ... .. f!
G. Copyright laws ............................................. f!
V. Transcript Fees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . f!
A. General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . f!
B. Notice of rates established . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . f!
C. Certification of court's rates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . f!
D. Sanctions for Overcharging ...... .... .... .. ... ...... . ...... . . . f!
E. Transcript Order Cancellations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
F. Items for Which No Fee May Be Charged .... ·.................. 10
VI. CJA Transcripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
A. General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
B. Commercial Duplication in Multi-Defendant Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
C. Payment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
VI I. Cases on Appeal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
A Transcript Due Dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
B. Required Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
C. Late Delivery of Transcripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
D. Use of Substitute Reporters ................................. 1.3.
VIII. Private Reporting Activities . .. ... . .. . . . ...... . . .. . .. ...... ... . ... . 11
IX. Record Keeping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
A Required Records and Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
B. Review of Reports by Court .. .. . . ..... .......... .... . . .... . . 11
C. Penalty For Not Submitting Reports ... . .............. . .... . .. . 14
D. Safekeeping of Records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
X. Contract Court Reporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
A. General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
B. Amendment to the Policy on Hiring of Contract Court Reporters . . . . . ~
C. Requirements of Contract Reporting Services ... .... .. .. . . ... . .. ~
XI. Realtime Reporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ~
XII. Electronic Sound Recording . ... .. . .. ..... . . .. .... ..... .... . .. . ... 16
A Responsibilities of the Clerk of Court . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..1§
XIII. Miscellaneous Provisions .... .. ... . ..... .. ............. ... ........ 16
XIV. Authority of the Chief Judge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
•
COURT REPORTER MANAGEMENT PLAN
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
I. Introduction
This plan for the effective utilization of court reporting services in the United States
District Court for the Western District of New York has been adopted by the Court
and is subject to final approval by the Second Circuit Judicial Council, pursuant to
Judicial Conference Policy, JCUS-MAR 82 , p. 8, and JCUS-SEP 87, p. 63.
The Court desires through this Plan to achieve effective management of the court
reporting services (stenographic, computer assisted and electronic sound recording
operators hereinafter referred to as ECR operators) through proper supervision and
control , which ensures reportorial services for judges including visiting and senior
judges, magistrate judges, and other judicial officers as needed. By designation of
the Chief Judge, the Clerk of Court (Clerk) is fully authorized administratively to
supervise and control the combined court reporting operations of the court.
JCUS-MAR 82, p. 8.
This plan is applicable to all court reporters employed by the Court, including
contract reporters.
II. Appointment, Assignment, and Dismissal of Court Reporters
A. General
The Court shall appoint and dismiss court reporters , and in connection
therewith, the Court shall consider the recommendations of the Clerk of
Court. Court reporters shall be appointed in accordance with the provisions
of the Court Reporters Act (28 U.S.C. § 753) and the Policies and
Procedures of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts and the Judicial
Conference of the United States. Only fully-qualified court reporters shall be
appointed as court reporters of the Court. Qualifications for official court
reporters require that an applicant:
1. Must possess at least four years of prime court reporting experience
in the freelance field of service or in other courts or a combination
thereof; and
2. must have qualified by testing for listing on the registry of professional
reporters of the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA) or
passed an equivalent qualifying examination (JCUS-SEP 77 , p. 55).
3. Equivalent Qualifying Examinations:
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(a) The NCRA examination for listing on the registry of
professional reporters (RPR) consists of a written knowledge
section plus a skills section. The skills section requires the
ability to record 180 words per minute for literary matter, 200
words per minute for jury charge, and 225 words per minute for
testimony and transcribe the recorded material at 95%
accuracy within 75 minutes.
(b) Professional associations (other than the NCRA) and state
license examinations may be acceptably equivalent to the
NCRA testing, but the requirements for the examinations at the
time of administration should be evaluated on a case-by-case
basis as the requirements change from time-to-time.
4. The qualifications do not require that court reporters have active
membership in the NCRA or another association to qualify for
appointment or promotion in the federal courts. The only requirement
is that the reporter have attained the credential by passing the
qualification examination.
5. In the absence of any fully-qualified applicants, the most qualified
applicant may be appointed at the discretion of the Court. In
connection therewith, the Court shall take into consideration the
recommendation of the Clerk of Court.
B. Probationary Appointment
1. Judicial Conference Policy
"All initial appointments shall be on a probationary basis to be fixed by
the employing court." (Report of the Proceedings of the Judicial
Conference of the United States, September 1977 page 56.)
2. Probationary Period
The probationary period for newly appointed court reporters shall be
180 days.
The court reporter's performance will be reviewed by their assigned
judge on or after the 180-day period. The judge may recommend to
the clerk of court that the court reporter:
a. be reviewed again in another thirty days, thereby extending the
180-day probationary period , for reasons set forth in the
performance appraisal form and related discussion; or
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b. be terminated for reasons set forth in the performance
appraisal form and related discussion.
C. Assignment of Court Reporters
Court reporters are not in the employ of a particular judge, but are employed
by the Court en bane. Court reporters shall be assigned to particular judges
as a matter of convenience. The Chief Judge, or his designee, shall
determine the availability of court reporters at all times for additional
assignments. When necessary, and depending upon availability and subject
to the approval of the judge to whom that reporter ordinarily is assigned, a
court reporter may be temporarily reassigned to another judge of the Court,
to a visiting judge, to a senior judge, to a magistrate judge, or to another
judicial officer as required, for reporting purposes.
D. Duties or Conditions of Employment
1. Recording Proceedings
A court reporter is to attend and record verbatim by shorthand or
mechanical means such court sessions or other proceedings as are
specified by statute, rule, or order of court.
2. Transcribing
A court reporter is to transcribe promptly those proceedings when
requested by any party who has agreed to pay the fees established
by the Judicial Conference, or any and all proceedings as a judge or
court may direct. It is also the duty of the court reporter to transcribe
all arraignments, pleas, and proceedings in connection with the
imposition of sentence in criminal cases, or provide to the court an
electronic sound recording of same, without charge.
3. Certifying and Filing Transcripts and Notes
It is the duty of an official, substitute, or contract court reporter to
certify and file promptly with the clerk of the court all original
shorthand notes and other original records of proceedings the
reporter has recorded, identifying in the certification the court in which
the proceedings were conducted. The reporter also shall provide to
the clerk of court an electronic copy, in pdf format, of all transcripts
prepared. The electronic copy shall be delivered by the court reporter
to the clerk of court, or his designee, no later than 3 working days
after delivery to the requesting parties; the transcript shall be
inspected as to format and filed. Whether a transcript is ordered or
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not, the court reporter shall retain the original records in the court
reporter's office.
Parties or members of the public may make a request to the court
reporter to review the original notes on file in the court reporter's
office.
4. Administrative
Administrative duties include billing for official transcripts ordered and
prepared; delivery and/or mailing of transcripts; financial and other
record keeping, preparation and filing of all required local and
Administrative Office reports; answering telephone calls from other
court personnel, attorneys, and litigants; responding to official
correspondence; reading notes to the court, counsel, or a jury; and
such other official duties as may be required by the court.
E. Hours of Attendance
Reporters, as court employees, should be available in the courthouse during
normal work hours. Court reporters in this district are on the Leave Act and
are assigned to a regularly scheduled 40-hour work week with starting and
ending times specified. When not actually recording court proceedings,
reporters should devote their time to preparing transcripts, if there are any
on order, and performing all administrative duties required of them.
Leave records for official court reporters shall be maintained in the same
manner as those maintained for deputy clerks employed in the Clerk's Office .
All requests for annual and planned sick leave shall be submitted in advance
and must be approved by the reporter's direct supervisor. All annual leave
and planned sick leave (e.g., appointments, treatments, etc.) must be
requested far enough in advance to permit the scheduling of an alternate
reporter. The clerk of court is responsible for maintaining leave records of
court reporters under the Leave Act.
F. Availability of Reporter
The court reporting supervisor is responsible for determining the availability
of court reporters and ECR operators. Whether a reporter is available to
cover proceedings for judicial officers depends on the extent of the reporter's
commitments for actual in-court/chambers services. Transcript preparation
requirements do not free a reporter from the responsibility to devote a proper
portion of time to recording proceedings for visiting judges, senior judges,
magistrate judges, or other judicial officers as required.
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G. Job Security
Court reporters are employed by the court en bane. A reporter should
continue to be employed at the pleasure of the court en bane, regardless of
the death, resignation, or retirement of a judge or other judicial officer.
H. Staff Reductions
All reporters serve at the pleasure of the court en bane. The court is entitled
to make changes ·in the reporting staff at will. There is no requirement,
moreover, that a court give preference to a reporter with seniority. In the
case of a staff reduction, competence should be a primary consideration in
deciding which reporters are to be retained.
I. Termination
Staff reporters have no vested right of employment. Staff reporters who do
not perform in a competent and satisfactory manner shall be subject to
dismissal. The clerk may terminate a staff reporter's employment with or
without cause, with the approval of the court en bane. If the overall work
volume of the court does not justify retention of the full complement of staff
reporters, the court will reduce the number of staff reporters through
relocation, attrition, or by giving reasonable notice of termination.
J. Retired or Separated Court Reporters' Responsibility to Provide Transcripts
Upon retirement or separation from the court, court reporters are responsible
for providing transcripts to ordering parties at the currently established page
rate. Court reporters must make every effort to serve the ordering party by
producing the transcript according to the delivery schedule established by the
Judicial Conference.
Court reporter notes are the property of the court and must remain in the
custody of the clerk of court. The notes may be removed only for purposes
of providing a transcript. The court reporter must file a free copy of the
transcript with the clerk of court within three days of delivery to any party.
The retired or separated court reporter will be paid for transcripts ordered by
the court at the page rate currently in effect.
K. Travel
Intra- and inter-district travel by court reporters is discouraged. Inter-circuit
travel is severely circumscribed. The court which is visited by a judge has
the responsibility to provide reportorial services, preferably from its normal
complement of reporters, or through a contractor.
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Ill. Court Reporter Supervision
A. Supervisory Responsibilities
The responsibility of the supervisor is to implement the elements of the Court
Reporter Management Plan, including the day-to-day management and
supervision of all official court reporters, so that the court's mission is
furthered by the effective and efficient utilization of court reporting services .
The Chief Judge or Clerk of Court shall coordinate and supervise the court
reporters and their activities by means of, among other things:
1. assignment and reassignment of court reporters for the purpose of
assuring the best utilization of reporting personnel;
2. supervising the relationship between litigants and reporters;
3. reviewing transcripts to assure full compliance with formal
requirements of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts and the
Judicial Conference of the United States;
4. reviewing transcript billings to assure that authorized transcript rates
are charged and that billing is in proper form and in accord with the
recommendations and requirements of the Judicial Conference of the
United States and adopted by order of this Court;
5. determining compliance by all court reporters with the provisions of 28
U.S.C. Section 753 concerning the recording, certifying and filing of
transcripts or tapes of all criminal arraignments, pleas and
proceedings in connection with the imposition of sentence;
6. reviewing the time records of the court reporters to assure proper
maintenance and accuracy;
7. ensuring the timely filing of all reports required by the Administrative
Office of the U.S. Courts and the Judicial Conference of the United
States;
8. acting as liaison to the Court of Appeals regarding matters pertinent
to court reporters and transcript production;
9. performing such other activities relating to court reporters as shall be
directed by the Court.
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IV. Transcripts
A General
One of the primary responsibilities of the court reporter is to provide a
transcript of court proceedings upon the request of a party or order of court.
The reporter must also provide a transcript or an electronic sound recording
of all arraignments, pleas, and proceedings in connection with the imposition
of sentence in criminal cases.
B. Arraignments, Pleas, and Sentences
1. The statute requires the court reporter to transcribe and certify all
arraignments, pleas, and proceedings in connection with the
imposition of sentence in criminal cases without additional
compensation, unless an electronic sound recording is made by the
reporter.
2. The court reporter must file with the clerk of court a certified electronic
sound recording or a transcript copy, furnished at no expense to the
Court, of all arraignments, pleas, and proceedings in connection with
the imposition of sentence in every criminal case.
3. The Congress and the Judicial Conference have insisted that the
requirements of 28 U.S.C. § 753 as to the transcribing or recording of
pleas and sentences in criminal cases be carefully and promptly
observed. The reporter should file a transcript within 30 days of the
close of the proceeding unless it was recorded on electronic sound
recording equipment. If an electronic recording device was utilized,
the electronic court recording operator shall certify the recording and
file it as soon as the recording media has been used to capacity.
4. A judge shall consider whether the clerk's copy is sufficient before
approving the production of another copy at government expense for
transcripts of arraignments, pleas, and sentences that are requested
by a defendant proceeding under the Criminal Justice Act who attacks
the validity of the conviction under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 and desires for
use on the motion transcripts of the plea and proceedings in
connection with the imposition of the sentence. Since this motion is
made in the trial court, there is always available in the clerk's files a
certified electronic sound recording or a transcript copy of these
proceedings (which the reporter must file for free pursuant to 28
U.S.C. § 753) which is available to the defendant and to the court with
other papers in the case, for consideration in connection with the
motion.
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C. Court Reporter's Transcript Responsibilities
In court reporter's dealings with parties requesting transcripts, court reporters
must maintain a professional relationship and provide timely quality service.
Court reporters should:
1. Adhere to the transcript format established by the Judicial
Conference.
2. Adhere to transcript page rates per category established by the court
and approved by the Judicial Conference.
3. Not require parties to purchase more pages than they want or need.
4. Provide (whenever possible) the type of service requested such as
ordinary, expedited, daily, or hourly transcript.
D. Routine Apportionment of Accelerated Transcript Rates Prohibited
The furnishing of accelerated transcript services in criminal proceedings
should be discouraged. However, it is recognized that there are some
circumstances in which such transcript services are necessary and required
by either the prosecution or the defense, or both. In those circumstances,
accelerated transcript services may be provided.
In those cases where accelerated transcript services are provided, the party
from whom the request or order emanates shall pay for the original, and if
the requesting or ordering party is other than defense counsel appointed
under the Criminal Justice Act, the CJA counsel shall be entitled to a copy
at the copy rate . ·
Court reporters are prohibited from routinely apportioning accelerated
transcript costs among parties in criminal proceedings.
E. Transcript Format
The Judicial Conference prescribed the transcript format in order to assure
that each party is treated equally throughout the country. It is essential that
the format requirements be followed because minor changes result in
significant monetary losses to parties. No court, judge, supervisor, reporter,
or transcriber may authorize a deviation from the requirements set forth by
the Judicial Conference. The per-page transcript rates are based on strict
adherence to the prescribed format.
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F. Inspection of Transcripts
The original transcript for filing with the clerk of court will be inspected for
compliance with all regulations regarding format. If a transcript is not in
compliance with the regulations, it will not be filed and will be returned to the
court reporter for corrections.
G. Copyright laws
Transcripts produced from records of proceedings in United States courts
are not protected by copyright. This applies whether the transcript was
produced by a court employee, a contractor, or a transcriber. Because
transcripts are in the public domain, they may be used, reproduced, and sold
by attorneys, parties, and the general public without additional compensation
to the court reporter, contractor or transcriber.
V. Transcript Fees
A General
The Judicial Conference has established five transcript categories based on
delivery times , and a separate category for realtime transcripts, and has set
a maximum rate for each. Neither the parties, nor the reporter, nor the
transcriber, nor the court may negotiate a higher rate without Judicial
Conference approval; however, in exceptional circumstances the Director of
the Administrative Office may authorize higher transcript rates. The Western
District of New York has adopted the maximum rate authorized by the
Judicial Conference as the acceptable schedule of fees.
B. Notice of rates established
A notice of the rates established by the district court and of the reporter's
obligation to furnish transcripts at those rates is posted prominently in the
clerk's office and on the District's public website, so that parties are apprised
of them .
C. Certification of court's rates
Certification of the court's rates has been forwarded to the Court Reporting
and Interpreting Section of the Administrative Office.
D. Sanctions for Overcharging
1. Monitoring
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The clerk of court shall monitor fees charged for transcripts including
reviewing invoices and vouchers for compliance with the court's
approved fee schedule.
2. Refunding
If court reporters and transcribers bill accurately and supervisors
monitor attentively, fees should always be correct. However, in the
case of mistakes or failure to comply with the maximum rates
established by the Judicial Conference and the district court, reporters
or transcribers shall refund over billings to the ordering party.
3. Termination
Reporters who intentionally overcharge should be terminated.
E. Transcript Order Cancellations:
No fee may be charged by official staff reporters on transcript orders if pages
have not been produced at the time the reporter learns that the transcript
order is canceled. The ordering party is expected to pay for all transcript
pages which have been produced at the time the order is canceled. The
reporter will stop production immediately upon notification of cancellation and
title the transcript, "Excerpt of Proceedings."
F. Items for Which No Fee May Be Charged
1. Copy Filed with the Court
2. Judge's Copy
3. Viewing the Record by a Party
4. Postage
5. Keyword Indexes
6. Cover
7. Certification
8. Service Fees, Credit Card Fees, and Late Charges
VI. CJA Transcripts
A. General
Transcripts provided for parties proceeding under the Criminal Justice Act
are to be paid from funds appropriated for that purpose. The court reporter
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must prepare such transcript in the format prescribed by the Judicial
Conference. Also, the court reporter may not exceed the rates for transcripts
established by the Judicial Conference in effect at the time authorization was
made. In the absence of prior special authorization, trial transcripts shall
exclude prosecution and defense opening statements, prosecution
argument, defense argument, prosecution rebuttal, voir dire, and the jury
instructions.
8. Commercial Duplication in Multi-Defendant Cases
1. In multi-defendant cases involving CJA defendants, no more than one
transcript should be purchased from the court reporter on behalf of
CJA defendants. One of the appointed counsel or the clerk of court
should arrange for the duplication, at commercially competitive rates,
of enough copies of the transcript for each of the CJA defendants for
whom a transcript has been approved. The cost of such duplication
will be charged to the CJA appropriation. The court reporter is not
precluded from furnishing duplication services. It has been
determined that the acceptable rate of reimbursement is $.10 per
page.
2. In individual cases involving requests for accelerated transcripts, the
court may grant an exception to the policy set forth in paragraph 8(1)
above, based upon a finding that application of the policy will
unreasonably impede the delivery of accelerated transcripts to
persons proceeding under the CJA. Such finding should be reflected
on the transcript voucher.
C. Payment
Transcripts for panel attorneys are paid from the current fiscal year on the
payment date without regard to the date ordered. Requests for payments
must be supported on Form CJA24 (Authorization and Voucher for Payment
of Transcript), approved by a judicial officer. Transcripts ordered by eligible
pro se defendants will be processed in the same manner as those ordered
by panel attorneys. Transcripts ordered by federal public or community
defenders will be by means of a Form AO 435 (Transcript Order) or
equivalent document. The Criminal Justice Act Panel Attorney Payment
System provides the process for payment of transcripts ordered under CJA
and the checks are issued by the AO, not the district court's disbursing office.
All payments are subject to audit by the Administrative Office.
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VI I. Cases on Appeal
A. Transcript Due Dates
Transcripts for appealed cases should be delivered within 30 days from the
date ordered or from the date satisfactory arrangements for payment have
been made. If the customary practice of the court reporter is not to require
prepayment, the 30-day period begins upon acceptance of the transcript
order by the court reporter.
8. Required Forms
Court reporters must complete and submit a Transcript Purchase Order form
indicating acceptance of the order as may be required by the court of
appeals. (Transcript Purchase Order)
C. Late Delivery of Transcripts
1. Penalties
Late delivery of transcripts impedes the work of the courts. Each
circuit council decides the due dates for the delivery of transcripts and
the amount of penalties to be applied when such dates are not met.
Therefore, reporters and transcribers may not charge the full fee if
they do not produce appellate transcript within the time limits required
by the circuit councils. Additionally, the district courts or circuit
councils may impose other penalties. One such penalty would be to
require the reporter to compensate a courtroom substitute while the
reporter prepares the overdue transcripts.
2. Waiver by Clerk of the Court of Appeals
While true hardship cases may arise occasionally, the clerk of the
court of appeals should grant exceptions to the fee reductions
sparingly. Only the clerk of the court of appeals may waive this
requirement for good cause. Otherwise, the fee discount must be
given. Approval of an extension by the court of appeals pursuant to
Rule 11 (b) of the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure does not
constitute a waiver of the penalty by the clerk of the court of appeals.
A waiver must be granted separate and apart from the request for an
extension of time by the court reporter or transcriber.
3. Overcharging
If overcharges occur, by virtue of a late delivery, the reporter or
transcriber shall make a refund to the ordering party.
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D. Use of Substitute Reporters
In the event that a court reporter is not available to provide transcripts in a
timely fashion i.e., within 30 days, the judge may appoint a substitute
reporter at the expense of the official staff reporter. A reporter shall not use
a substitute reporter without the prior approval of the clerk or the judge to
whom the reporter is assigned at that time. Substitutes, when authorized,
shall possess the qualifications of court reporters.
The work of court reporters shall be "note readable," such that the
stenographic notes of one court reporter can be read by another in the event
of an emergency.
The marking, filing, and storing of reporters' notes shall be standardized in
order to assure the prompt location of notes and withdrawal of the notes in
the event the reporter-author of the notes is not available.
VI 11. Private Reporting Activities
Court reporters who are under the Leave Act, by being placed on a regular
tour of duty, may not perform any private work during normal court hours,
and shall not use the facilities of the court to perform any private work. Time
off from duty in a pay status authorized by law must be regarded as a part
of the regular tour of duty (Comptroller General Decision 8-78359 Sept. 1,
1948). Therefore, court reporters may not take annual leave to engage in
private reporting activities. If a reporter's transcripts are current (none over
thirty days old) and the reporter is on leave without pay, he or she may
engage in private reporting during court hours, but may not use facilities of
the court for such purpose. Court reporters must make sure that they do not
neglect their official reporting duties, particularly the preparation of transcript
for cases on appeal, in order to engage in private reporting business
ventures. Whenever there is a conflict between official and private reporting
work, the court reporter must postpone private reporting work.
IX. Record Keeping
A Required Records and Reports
Each staff reporter is responsible for maintaining the records and for timely
submitting the reports that the Judicial Conference requires. These records
and reports must be in the format that the AO prescribes, and must be
prepared using the Automated Court Reporter Application (ACRA) reporting
system .
8. Review of Reports by Court
The clerk of court shall review for accuracy and completeness forms AO 40A
and 408, the reports which all court reporters must submit to the Judicial
Conference.
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C. Penalty For Not Submitting Reports
Court reporters shall file their reports when due. When reports are not timely
received, the Court Reporting and Interpreting Section of the Court
Administration Division of the Administrative Office of U.S. Courts is
responsible for ensuring that the reporter's salary is withheld for as long as
the reporter fails to submit the required reports . Withheld salaries are
released upon receipt of the delinquent reports.
D. Safekeeping of Records
The clerk of court is responsible for the safe keeping of all such filed records.
Court reporters are physically to turn over their original notes and electronic
sound recordings to the clerk of court within 90 days after the conclusion of
the proceeding or within 90 days after the expiration of the contract,
whichever comes first. The original notes, electronic sound recordings or
other original records and the copy of the transcript in the clerk's office are
available during normal office hours for inspection by any person without
charge.
The clerk of court has designated that the notes and electronic sound
recordings be maintained in the court reporters' offices.
X. Contract Court Reporting
A General
Contract reporters shall be utilized only pursuant to the policies and
procedures of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts . Contract
reporters will not be used or paid for by the Court to help official reporters
alleviate transcript backlogs.
Contractual reporting services are provided as a supplement to the services
of official staff and electronic court recorder operators. Contractual services
will only be used after it has been determined by the clerk of court that no
court reporter is available and that all official court reporters are fully
engaged in serving the court's reporting needs. The use of contractors will
be minimized to every extent practicable.
Some of the needs for which contract court reporting services may be
employed include substituting for a court reporter on approved leave and
reporting for visiting judges, provided that, in both cases, one of the court's
reporters is not available.
Contractual services paid for by the courts may not be used to assist the
court's reporters in the production of expedited, daily, or hourly transcript, nor
to replace the court's reporters to allow them to engage in transcript
production or in private reporting work. Contractual attendance fees cannot
be levied against parties.
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B. Amendment to the Policy on Hiring of Contract Court Reporters
During its March 1992 session, the Judicial Conference approved an
amendment to its policy on the hiring of contract court reporters. A court is
allowed to hire a contract court reporter when all of the following conditions
exist:
1. The official court reporter has requested relief because a judge has
scheduled more than one trial per day, and the reporter is reporting
for at least five hours on each such day;
2. The chief judge of the district certifies that a judge has scheduled
more than one trial per day requiring reporting services for five or
more hours per day and the court's other official court reporters are
unable to cover the proceedings because they are scheduled to report
other proceedings or are on leave;
3. The purpose for considering and approving the relief is not to allow
the official court reporter to work on transcript production;
4. An official court reporter not under a tour of duty who is provided relief
is prohibited from engaging in private reporting work on those days
relief is provided.
C. Requirements of Contract Reporting Services
Contract reporting services must abide by the requirements of 28 U.S.C.§
753 and requirements of the Judicial Conference. The contractor must
certify the original notes and file them with the clerk of court, comply with the
Judicial Conference requirements for transcript format, properly bill the
parties for transcript, and produce transcripts within the time guidelines of the
Judicial Conference.
XI. Realtime Reporting
Realtime reporting technologies allow the record to be electronically transcribed in
the courtroom using software that translates the shorthand instantaneously and
displays it on a monitor in front of the reporter, the Judge, and the attorneys,
All parties requesting realtime services shall be responsible for providing their own
personal computers and monitors. The certified realtime reporter shall provide
wiring and data communications connections needed to provide realtime services
to these persons. Parties should coordinate and pre-test their equipment with the
court reporter before official proceedings begin.
Technical Standards for realtime reporting are published in the Guide to Judiciary
Policies and Procedures, Volume 6, Chapter 3.
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XII. Electronic Sound Recording
The U.S. District Court Electronic Sound Recording Management Manual and the
Electronic Court Recorder Operators' Manual provide specific information and forms
which electronic court recorder operators should follow when court proceedings are
recorded by electronic sound recording systems.
(
A Responsibilities of the Clerk of Court '
The clerk of court is responsible for the efficient and effective functioning of
electronic sound recording. These responsibilities include:
1. Supervising electronic court recorder operators.
2. Preserving the audio records according to records disposition
schedules established by law or the Judicial Conference (See: Guide,
Vol 10, Ch 6). Audio is automatically store.d tb a shared drive for both
Buffalo and Rochester. The shared drive is backed up nightly.
3. Assigning operators to record proceedings as needed.
4. Cross-training personnel so that operators are available as needed.
'
5. Reproducing audio recordings and making them available as required
,, by law, at the rates prescribed by the Judicial Conference.
.6. · Esta.bli~hi.ng 'a system for listening to the audio recordings in the
: ,:.. .. .. CQUrthouse. · ·, ·,. · · ··
7. Arranging for the transcription of the record , or such parts thereof, as
may be requested by the court or a party.
8. Monitoring transcripts produced by transcription services to ensure
that they conform to the transcript format requirements of the Judicial
Conference.
XIII. Miscellaneous Provisions
Access to the Judiciary Data Communications Network (DCN). Official court
reporters in the Western District are authorized access to the DCN for the purposes
of accessing judiciary electronic mail , the J-Net, on-line queries of case
managemenUdocketing systems , on-line calendaring systems used by the Courts,
automated forms , and the ACRA reporting system . However, access to the DCN
must be through government-owned equipment. Official court reporters are strictly
prohibited from using any government-owned computer hardware or any automated
systems accessed through the DCN to generate transcript income. Contract
reporters, typists and scopists must not be allowed access to the DCN at any time.
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. '
XIV. Authority of the Chief Judge
Any violation of this plan shall be referred to the Chief Judge for appropriate action .
Approved and Adopte~ by the Court. ~
~--~ David G. Larimer, Senior District Judge
John T. C rtin, Senior District Judge
Michael A. Telesca , Senior District Judge William M. Skretny, Senior Di rict Judge
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