Carol Kusinitz Saves The Day!!!

Doris O. Wong Associates, Inc., to the rescue - AGAIN! A reporter with no credentials, but advertising herself as a realtime writer with twenty years' experience, was called by a "national firm" to cover an assignment in our city. She couldn't handle the case, and the attorneys were upset. The national firm, in a panic, called us to see if we could send a realtime writer to take over. We always try to have a reporter on standby, and one of our best just happened to be on call. 

This was a patent job with an expert economist as a witness. Counsel told our reporter that the morning reporter's realtime was very hard to read and that she could not read back. The videographer told our reporter that the morning reporter's realtime equipment failed several times, and because she didn't use a software that refreshes the text, all testimony previous to the failures could not be accessed when she restarted the feed.

We sent over an NCRA-Certified Court Reporter who stepped in and provided iCVNet realtime on iPads with a feed the lawyers kept exclaiming was "phenomenally clear." Thank you, Carol Kusinitz! Counsel said that this was the best realtime feed they had seen in the five years of depositions taken in the case all over the country.

Be wary of “national firms” that don’t vet their far-flung reporters adequately. Call a local agency with a proven record of delivering the transcripts and services you need. We are proud to say that ALL of our reporters are certified and are members of our state and national organizations. We hold ourselves to very high standards because our clients deserve the best.

COURT REPORTERS: PRACTICE WITH TED

One of my New Year’s resolutions is to listen to at least one TED Talk a week.  In case you are not familiar with TED Talks, they are global conferences on a wide variety of topics having to do with Technology, Entertainment, and Design.  Their slogan is “Ideas Worth Spreading.”  Speakers give 18-minute lectures on topics they have researched and have a unique insight on.  Some of the subjects listed on their site include human origins, epidemiology, guitar, failure, and happiness.  They are so informative and entertaining, thought provoking, many times inspirational and uplifting.  I just recently listened to a presentation given by David Blaine, the magician, titled “How I Held My Breath for 17 Minutes.”  Totally fascinating! 

Anyway, I got to thinking that this would be a great resource for court reporting students!  I think that students who are practicing for their 200s and above could benefit from trying to write these lectures “live.” There are so many lectures to choose from.  There is something for everybody.  Not only will you build your vocabulary and have new words to add to your dictionary, but you will be exposed to different speaker styles, just like working reporters out in the field.  It is great practice, especially for your “literary” takes. 

Should you decide to take advantage of these lectures, practice as always with purpose.  You can write the whole take to get a feel for the topic.  Then you can define any new words for your dictionary.  Writing the whole take will help build your endurance and stamina, too, and strengthen your concentration skills.  Then you can break the lecture up into five-minute takes so it will more accurately reflect a test take.  Be sure to critically examine your writing and correct any misstrokes.  Then try writing a perfect five-minute take. 

Sometimes practicing can be a little dull.  Finding new dictation material can be a challenge.  So take advantage of this free educational and practicing opportunity.  Go to www.ted.com, pick a TED talk on a topic that interests you, and give it a try.  Enjoy!