Do you love the excitement of courtroom drama? Have you dreamed of a career that puts you in the center of high-stakes legal action? If so, then court reporting may be the career choice for you.  

Court reporters are employed by city, state, and federal courts to create transcripts of judicial proceedings. They are responsible for ensuring an accurate, complete, and secure legal record. Court reporters are also employed in private industry to record meetings, speeches, conversations, and other events. They may provide real-time translating and closed-captioning services to the deaf and hard-of-hearing community.
Court reporting isn’t always just listening and writing, though. Court reporters may assist judges and trial attorneys to organize and search for information in the official record. They may be asked by judges and attorneys to make suggestions regarding courtroom administration and procedure. Court reporters may also be responsible for the storage and retrieval of stenographic notes, voice files, or audio recordings in paper or digital format.

Are there opportunities outside of legal courts? Sure! Webcasters capture press conferences, technical training seminars, product introductions, and sales meetings, and transmit them to audiences via computer networks. Others work for government agencies, including the U.S. Congress and state legislatures, to capture or record the proceedings. Television networks or cable stations, sporting events, and other agencies employ broadcast captioners who specialize in captioning television programming for people with hearing loss. Court reporters also work in classrooms as communication access realtime (CART) providers.

What qualifications does a court reporter need?  Many states require that court reporters earn the Certified Court Reporter (CCR) designation. This is a state test administered by a board of examiners. Successful court reporters may need to be proficient in a variety of technologies such as the stenotype machine, digital audio equipment, and computer networks. Of course, the ability to transcribe quickly and accurately is very important—for example, the federal government requires that federal court reporters are able to capture a minimum of 225 words per minute.

How about training? There are many career education schools that offer court reporting programs, and many can be found on Education-For-Careers. The National Court Reporters Association (NCRA) has certified about 70 court reporting programs that offer courses in stenotype computer-aided transcription and real-time reporting. Many offer associate of applied science (AAS) degree programs that may take two years, while others offer short-term certificate programs and online programs.

Job prospects are excellent! The U.S. government projects that during the current decade from 2006 through 2016, employment of court reporters will grow 25 percent, which is much faster than the average for all occupations. Growing demand may be the result of the growth in real-time broadcast captioning and translating opportunities.
For example, federal legislation mandates that all new television programming be captioned for the deaf and hard-of-hearing. Likewise, by the year 2010 Spanish-language programming must be captioned. The government reports that job opportunities during the decade 2006—2016 should be excellent, especially for those with certification.*
Court reporting can be a rewarding career with the potential for good earnings. If you enjoy working with people and have a flair for writing, court reporting may be the right career path for you. 

*Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2008-09 Edition, Court Reporters, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos152.htm (visited January 31, 2008)