CSR Communication & Stakeholder Relations 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A party who was not present at a deposition requests a copy of the transcript. The reporter should:
- Provide the transcript immediately as it is a public record
- Decline and advise the party to seek access through the ordering attorney or court process (Correct answer)
- Provide only the exhibit list without the testimony
- Contact the deponent for permission before releasing the transcript
Correct answer: Decline and advise the party to seek access through the ordering attorney or court process
Deposition transcripts are not automatically public records, and reporters should direct non-party requests through proper legal channels.
Question 2: During a high-profile trial, a journalist contacts the court reporter to ask for advance access to the daily transcript before it is filed. The reporter should:
- Provide access if the journalist agrees to embargo the content
- Decline and explain that transcripts must follow established distribution procedures (Correct answer)
- Charge a premium rate and provide the transcript immediately
- Refer the journalist to the presiding judge's public information officer
Correct answer: Decline and explain that transcripts must follow established distribution procedures
Reporters must follow established procedures for transcript distribution and cannot provide advance or preferential access to any outside party.
Question 3: An attorney becomes combative and verbally abusive toward the reporter during a deposition over a readback request. The most appropriate response is to:
- Argue back to defend professional accuracy
- Silently comply to keep the proceeding on track
- Calmly but firmly explain your professional role and, if necessary, suspend the proceeding (Correct answer)
- Immediately leave the deposition without notice
Correct answer: Calmly but firmly explain your professional role and, if necessary, suspend the proceeding
Reporters are professionals who can address misconduct calmly and are permitted to suspend a proceeding if abusive behavior continues to impede their duties.
Question 4: A witness requests to review her own transcript and make substantive changes to the testimony. Under typical deposition procedures, the reporter should:
- Incorporate the changes directly into the original transcript
- Provide a signature page or errata sheet for the witness to note changes (Correct answer)
- Refuse the request entirely, as testimony cannot be altered
- Allow changes only if the deposing attorney consents
Correct answer: Provide a signature page or errata sheet for the witness to note changes
Witnesses are typically afforded the opportunity to review and note changes via an errata sheet, which is attached to but does not replace the original transcript.
Question 5: A court reporter receives a subpoena for her stenographic notes from a proceeding. She should:
- Destroy her notes before complying, as notes are personal work product
- Comply with the subpoena and produce the notes as directed (Correct answer)
- Refuse because stenographic notes are always privileged
- Provide a transcript instead of the notes without disclosing the subpoena
Correct answer: Comply with the subpoena and produce the notes as directed
A valid subpoena requires compliance; the reporter should produce her notes as directed, potentially consulting an attorney about the scope of the request.
Question 6: During a deposition, both attorneys agree to go off the record to conduct a settlement discussion. The reporter should:
- Continue recording everything in case the settlement falls through
- Stop recording immediately once both parties agree and note the time off the record (Correct answer)
- Leave the room to ensure complete confidentiality
- Record the settlement discussion but mark it as confidential
Correct answer: Stop recording immediately once both parties agree and note the time off the record
When all parties agree to go off the record, the reporter stops recording and should note the time the record was suspended and subsequently resumed.
Question 7: A party's in-house counsel who did not retain the reporter attempts to direct the reporter to exclude certain testimony from the transcript. The reporter should:
- Comply since counsel has legal authority over the witness
- Decline and explain that the transcript must reflect everything on the record (Correct answer)
- Consult with the retaining attorney before deciding
- Take a recess to contact the court for guidance
Correct answer: Decline and explain that the transcript must reflect everything on the record
No party, regardless of their relationship to the witness, has authority to direct the reporter to omit on-the-record testimony from the certified transcript.
CSR Communication & Stakeholder Relations 3
A party who was not present at a deposition requests a copy of the transcript.
The reporter should: