Court Reporter
Have you ever thought about a career in the exciting world that is our legal system? You don’t have to be a lawyer or a judge to get yourself right inside a courtroom. A court reporter can be a very interesting position for you. They basically attend court sessions and keep a court record of everything that is said during a court hearing. A court reporter typically either types everything out or uses a voice recorder to keep the court record. Being a court reporter can be a great opportunity, but there are certain qualifications you need to become one. Here are some of the courses you need to take before being able to step into the courtroom to keep a court record.
1. Legal language – Before you start keeping a court record, it’s important that you know the language being used. If a court reporter does not know what legal jargon is being presented at a hearing, they will not be able to perform their job, which is keeping a transcript of every single thing being said in the courtroom. Having a large vocabulary would make keeping the court record a much simpler task. A court reporter can not misspell words or write down the wrong ones during any case, whether it is high profile or not.
2. Medical language – The reasons for this type of coursework is very similar to that of the legal language courses. Many cases will contain medical information, and it is important that a court reporter be familiar with that type of jargon to be able to keep an accurate court record.
3. Business law – This is also very important for a court reporter to know. With all the cases and hearings involving businesses, you will be having to deal with business law and language on a regular basis. Your court record will be filled with this type of language, some of which may be very dense.
4. English – There will be a decent amount of English classes you will need to take to become a court reporter. There are all sorts of people that will be attending a court hearing, some of which may have very extensive vocabularies. It is your responsibility to be familiar with the language being used for your court record.
Being a court reporter is certainly not for everyone. You have to be a superb listener, a fast typist, and definitely be able to keep your composure while completing the court record. Just to be eligible for keeping a court record during a hearing or trial you must be able to type 250 words per minute or more. It is not a very easy position, but it will certainly keep your attention. Being able to listen to all the types of court cases can be very informative, and is a big reason why many people choose to be become a court reporter. If this is something that interests you, give it a shot!
