Machines to do court reporting

PROVO — There's no sound as Jeff Eaton's fingers fly over the small keyboard, documenting every "Yes, your honor," "Could you please describe that to the jury," and "The record will reflect."

But come June 30, Eaton's fingers will take a rest as he and his colleagues are released from their state jobs as court stenographers — the keepers of the record.

It was a decision mandated by the Legislature as the state faced growing expenses and dwindling budgets.

Initially the courts were asked to slice off $4.5 million, said Daniel Becker, who heads the Administrative Office of the Courts. But the final required cut was larger: just over $5.5 million, he said.

Of that amount, $3.8 million is from personnel — 18 certified court reporters, 18 clerks, 11 administrative level jobs, 11.5 jobs from juvenile/probation services, four custodians and one law clerk.

"With respect to the court reporters, it was really based on the fact that there is another way of getting the work done that costs considerably less," Becker said. "And (we are) already doing that other kind of work."

By using courtrooms' digital recording systems rather than fast-fingered typists, Becker said, the state will save about $1.15 million a year.

But Eaton, supervising reporter in 4th District Court, and his colleagues question that figure.

"I understand the reasons for cutting back the budget," Eaton said. "(But) the public needs to know … if there is being represented there is savings, exactly what that savings is."

Old vs. new

Before June 30, 17 official court reporters meticulously documented every word of various hearings, occasionally asking for clarification of mumbled words or phrases. After the hearing, they typed up a verbatim record.

Eaton uses five backup systems including hard drives, external drives and a real-time feed to his computer.

The court reporters were salaried, and their transcript fees — money from the attorneys buying their record at $3.50 a page — all went into a state fund.

Court stenographers could draw from that fund to pay for training or new equipment, Eaton said.

But after June 30, the record will be digitally gathered by court microphones only.

When attorneys need a transcript, the court will turn to a list of certified reporters, or employees of certified reporters, who will listen to the tape, then type every word.

But unlike Eaton, they can't ask for clarification. And there are no backup systems for a digital glitch.

Court administrators insist it won't be a huge change because audio systems have already been used in Utah courts since the mid-'90s.

The AOC has also spent the past several years upgrading the existing systems, said Tim Shea, staff attorney for the Administrative Office of the Courts.