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2012

May

May 15, 2012 — NCRA Board selects Jim Cudahy as next executive director & CEO
The Board of Directors of the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA) announced today that it has appointed Jim Cudahy as its executive director and CEO, effective June 1.
May 15, 2012 — NCRA commends Sens. Franken and Boozman for introducing Local Courthouse Safety Act
Legislation would help make courthouses safer for court employees and members of the public.
May 9, 2012 — Bar reviews rules regarding lawyers’ technology know-how
The American Bar Association has recently taken into consideration the notion that a lawyer must be tech-savvy independent of their support staff in order to maintain ethical standards.
May 9, 2012 — California Court mistakenly withheld thousands of records
It was discovered that a long-standing, erroneous filing system is to blame for a Shasta County court reserving thousands of files that should be public.
May 9, 2012 — FCC’s universal services to include Internet access
The use of the Internet has become an essential tool that affects most Americans’ daily lives, thus, the principle of universal service will adapt to modern needs connecting users to this essential communication medium.
May 2, 2012 — BLOG: Reading captions improves reading skills
Hearing loss and deafness blogger attests to the fact that closed captioning made her children stronger readers.
May 2, 2012 — Money troubles hit Portland area courts
Judiciary administrators in Oregon cut the circuit courts’ budget for the third consecutive year, causing one of the state’s largest cities to suffer delayed justice.
May 2, 2012 — The Nation recognizes Law Day 2012
Yesterday, groups united nationwide to call attention to the professions surrounding our judicial system, the importance of this critical part of our democracy, and the continued struggle with budget cuts in many states’ courts.
May 1, 2012 — Today is Law Day
From the White House: “Our courts are the guarantors of civil justice, social order, and public safety, and we must do everything we can to enable their critical work.”

April

April 19, 2012 — "Cocktail party" effect on voice recognition technology
Scientists study the ability of humans to detect a single voice from a crowd of voices and determine new uses for their findings.
April 19, 2012 — Cutbacks continue to cause concern in California
The state's Supreme Court Justice weighs in as the threat of another budget cut shakes Calif.'s judicial system officials.
April 13, 2012 — NCRA commends EDGE award recipient
NCRA Member Kathy Cortopassi of Indiana is honored for her work as President of Voice to Print Captioning, LLC.
April 12, 2012 — Courts prioritize during cutback crises
NPR notes budget woes for courts in Kansas, Oregon, Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio, California, Minnesota, and Florida, and comments on the most recent stats regarding cutbacks.
April 10, 2012 — Comma misconceptions
Read this article from the opinion pages on what one contributor thinks about certain punctuation and its place in written word.
April 5, 2012 — $1.2 million in Training for Realtime Writers grants announced
April 5, 2012 — Key supporters join Ethics First
April 2, 2012 — California courts abort expensive project
After over 10 years and millions of dollars spent, Calif. Courts have decided to forgo the implementation of an automated Court Case Management System (CCMS).
April 2, 2012 — California courts slow to a crawl
Budget cuts are causing more difficulty for anyone needing court-rendered services in Calif.’s San Mateo County.
April 2, 2012 — Ohio courts note decrease in caseloads
Recent figures reveal why the publics’ lack of money effect the number of cases seen in the courts.

March

March 29, 2012 — LA Deafness Council can sue CNN
In California a federal judge ruled that the Greater Los Angeles Deafness Council has a viable case against CNN for failing to caption videos on their website.
March 27, 2012 — NCRA President Doug Friend stands up for steno to Law Technology News Article
On Thursday, March 22, NCRA President Doug Friend, RDR, CRR, submitted a letter to the editor promoting stenographic court reporters in response to a Law Technology News article promoting personal digital voice recorders.
March 23, 2012 — Alabama governor calls for more budget cuts
Tax revenues fail to meet expectations forcing Gov. Robert Bentley to enforce another budget cut in the middle of the fiscal year.
March 23, 2012 — Supreme Court chief justice addresses California budget crisis
The state’s highest-ranking justice describes her position on the struggle to maintain Calif.’s judiciary system amid substantial funding loss.
March 22, 2012 — Correction on Stenograph's press release in the March 2012 JCR
March 22, 2012 — Get CEUs in Brazil!
A message from Merilyn Sanchez: Together with People to People Citizen Ambassador Programs, I am leading a court reporters delegation to Brazil on October 20-26, 2012, and I would like to personally invite you to travel with me on this exciting professional and cultural program.
March 21, 2012 — Advocating for California’s court reporters
Encouraging statement from an advocate of court reporting and arguments why these professionals provide the only credible record.
March 21, 2012 — Alabama courts appropriate security funds
After a budget cut in December left Jefferson County courts short on cash, their committee found a way to extend their security contract for another 6 months.
March 21, 2012 — Arizona woman thankful for captions
In a letter to YumaSun.com, a local woman expresses her gratitude for the captioning provided at a recent production of a play.
March 21, 2012 — Kansas advocacy changes mandatory certification for freelancers
On Thursday, March 15, the Kansas Court Reporters Association (KCRA) achieved a major legislative victory as Governor Sam Brownback signed House Bill 2484, legislation requiring a court reporter to be certified to take depositions. KCRA was incredibly active in advocating for the certification language to be placed into law, working with legislators to explain the importance of a certified court reporter in a deposition setting. Over a three-week period, KCRA leadership testified in front of both the House and Senate Judiciary Committees, arguing in favor of the legislation and stressing why a certified court reporter is the best option for taking the record.
March 21, 2012 — Technology complicating depositions in courtrooms
As lawyers begin to integrate more multi-media to court proceedings, difficulties arise causing frustration for judges and juries.
March 20, 2012 — FCC relents on penalty for California emergency broadcasters
San Diego TV is off the hook for $25,000 in fines from the FCC penalizing the station for numerous emergency broadcast accessibility failures in 2008.
March 20, 2012 — Florida’s legislation leaves clerks blindsided
After an unexpected decision to further increase budget cuts, Fla. legislation leaves officials anticipating more backlogging in 2012-2013 for more cases.
March 20, 2012 — Massachusetts courts won't close, but funding needed
Court official Robert Mulligan announced yesterday that the 2013 fiscal year would have to include level funding in order to preserve the safety of Mass. courts and the overall judicial process.
March 16, 2012 — California courts forced to limit work days
State officials plan courthouse closures in anticipation of another difficult fiscal year in 2013.
March 16, 2012 — Foreclosure cases pile up as a result of staff cutbacks
States struggle with staggering numbers of backlogged foreclosure cases as budget cuts continue to slow down courts.
March 16, 2012 — VITAC offers aid to Kony 2012 campaign
The nation's largest closed captioning company reaches out to Invisible Children, the non-profit behind the Kony 2012 viral video.
March 13, 2012 — Officials express need for court reporters
Commission on Judical Performance (CJP) says court reporter cutbacks will hinder the California's judicial system.
March 13, 2012 — Violence erupts at Wash. state courthouse, judge stabbed
The search continues for a man who stabbed a judge and shot a sheriff's deputy in Wash. state late last week.
March 8, 2012 — Court reporters visit Capitol Hill
Read details about Boot Camp and view photos from the trip downtown.
March 8, 2012 — Florida courts work to pass $4 million budget stipend
If the proposed one-time stipend of $4 million dollars passes this week, Fla. Courts will finally have enough funding to hire the staff needed to deal with a vast foreclosure backlog.
March 8, 2012 — Making the most of your tech Freelance Chat tonight at 9 PM ET
Join the Freelance Community of Interest and members of the TechEval committee for a robust discussion on the latest in reporter technology.
March 5, 2012 — Blog: Call Centers reject speech recognition
CallCentreHelper.com blogger reports on a recent survey that revealed the negative attitude towards voice recognition technology in the contact center industry.
March 5, 2012 — Budget cuts cause chaos in Iowa
Without appropriate funding for government programs and legislative processes, the state of Iowa has reported major problems due to staff shortages.
March 5, 2012 — Court reporter entrepreneurs discuss their careers
The incredible diligence of court reporters Julie Green and Cheri Fike-Moes, co-owners of Kings Court Reporters, a prominent court reporting firm in Hanford, Ct., are the topic of this career feature from the Hanford Sentinel.
March 2, 2012 — March 2 is Read Captions Across America Day
The Described and Captioned Media Program (DCMP) has joined together with the National Education Association (NEA) to designate March 2 as Read Captions Across America Day.

February

February 29, 2012 — Automatic notifications now available for PACER
A new tool is available to members who take Federal Court cases.
February 29, 2012 — CCAC launches new Power of Captioning newsletter
This past January, the Collaborative for Communications Access via Captioning launched their first newsletter dedicated to resources for the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing community.
February 29, 2012 — TRAIN program launches during TechCon and Boot Camp weekend
NCRA's newest task force, TRAIN (which stands for Taking Realtime Awareness and Innovation Nationwide) presented their "train the trainer" styled program to an audience filled with state leaders and technologically oriented court reporters.
February 29, 2012 — TechCon event exceeds expectations in Reston, VA
For the first time, NCRA brought together the CLVS Seminar, the Realtime Systems Administrator Workshop and the Trial Presentation programs.
February 29, 2012 — Tip of the Month: Searching by Image
This month’s tip comes to use from the New York Times “Tip of the Week” on the Gadgetwise blog.
February 29, 2012 — Track who reads your email with new app
The application ToutApp now has a new feature which will allow users to see who viewed emails, where they were viewed, what the recipient clicked on, and how long they read the email.
February 29, 2012 — “What’s in my bag?” – Part one
Recently, we asked members of our Technology Evaluation Committee one simple question: What’s in your bag?
February 26, 2012 — 2012-13 Slate Announced by Nominating Committee
The NCRA Nominating Committee has announced the slate of nominees for the 2012-13 Board of Directors.
February 24, 2012 — Formal Board proceedings have concluded
NCRA Board meeting has concluded.
February 23, 2012 — Anti-contracting legislation introduced in Mississippi
February 23, 2012 — NCRA Supports Congressional Hearing Health Caucus
February 22, 2012 — Cornell University initiates new computer-based program for deaf and hard-of-hearing
Beginning in the fall of 2013, students will be able to enroll in Cornell University’s computer-based program that supports deaf and hard-of-hearing students in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
February 22, 2012 — Deaf fan settles suit with University of Kentucky
Charles Mitchell, a deaf University of Kentucky football season ticket holder and the university have settled a lawsuit over closed-captioning at the UK football stadium. New scoreboards have been installed and will now provide closed-captioning throughout football games in the future at UK.
February 22, 2012 — Increase in funding proposed to Alabama state court
The Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Chuck Malone spoke to members of the Alabama Press Association in Tuscaloosa saying he’d like an additional $17 million in appropriations for the Alabama state court system.
February 21, 2012 — Chief Justice wants $17 million for Alabama Courts
Alabama Supreme Court Justice Chuck Malone rallies support for a substantial increase in state courts budget.
February 21, 2012 — Limited access to justice for Florida’s poor
Concerning problems that eligible clients face when in need of legal aid are discussed in this editorial from The Miami Herald.
February 15, 2012 — Despite budget cuts, Wyoming courts grant raises
Wyoming Supreme Court chief justice raises pay for judges and court employees.
February 8, 2012 — PCRA President warns: proposed audio system has pitfalls
PCRA President Lillian Freiler, RMR, CMSRS, responds to a recent proposal to install digital audio recording devices in all Erie County, Pa. courtrooms.
February 7, 2012 — Aiming to go paperless in Minnesota courts
The Judicial Council of Minnesota is pushing paperless electronic filing in Minnesota courts, with a goal of having it in practice in five years
February 7, 2012 — CNN website not closed captioned, lawsuit filed
CNN.com does not close caption its website that makes up most of its programming, thus hard-of-hearing Californians have filed a lawsuit against CNN.
February 7, 2012 — Google Doodle commemorates Charles Dickens on his birthday
Google Doodle celebrates the life of Charles Dickens on his 200th birthday.
February 7, 2012 — Missing Miami digital court reporter turns up in court
On Monday morning, digital court recorder Roseann McMahon showed up in a Miami, Fla., court to defend herself.
February 7, 2012 — North Carolina courts propose budget cuts
With rising court costs, substantial cuts in court employees, and use of plea bargains, N.C. courts are being massively affected by budget cuts.
February 6, 2012 — CNN Sued: Won’t caption web videos
The suit alleges that the news source is in violation of state disability laws, but CNN contests the need for closed captions on their website.
February 6, 2012 — FCC rules regarding online captioning
One major content developer is forced to comply as the Federal Communications Commission approves new captioning regulations for online media.
February 6, 2012 — NCRA member interview: Hawaii Business
Sharon Mujtabaa, RPR, talks about hard work, her career choices, and her initial fascination with the world of steno.
February 6, 2012 — UPDATE: The latest on state court budget cuts
New coverage on the state courts suffering through budget cuts and the potential for more problems.
February 3, 2012 — AG Bell aids campaign to provide CART for students in need
Alexander Graham Bell Association takes action in support of deaf and hard of hearing students by filing two amicus briefs in federal courts of appeal.
February 3, 2012 — FCC Consumer and Govt. Affairs Chief Exiting
Get the whole story in this article from Broadcasting & Cable:
February 3, 2012 — Minnesota courts go paperless
Now, court documents will be managed electronically with this major change in the state’s judiciary system.
February 2, 2012 — Cal. Courts funding bill hits a wall
The state’s Senate has halted the campaign for a bill created to raise funds for California’s judiciary system.
February 2, 2012 — Court reporter arrested in Miami, FL over missing transcripts
Roseann McMahon is arrested after failing to produce missing transcripts.
February 2, 2012 — Nassau’s Court of Appeals in limbo
The Court of Appeals in Nassau idles as they wait for lower courts to deliver transcripts.
February 2, 2012 — Who is Footing the Bill?
Debts to litigation-service providers are subject to a ‘disclaimer rule‘ as payment discrepancies ensue.

January

January 31, 2012 — The limits of speech-recognition technology
For several years, speech-recognition technology has progressed rapidly, appearing in devices ranging from Bluetooth headsets, to phones, to cars.
January 30, 2012 — Detroit court reporter wraps up 27 yr. career
Retiring as the longest-serving court reporter in her district, Carol Richardson recounts her prolific career.
January 30, 2012 — Remembering Richard "Bear" Smith
Husband of President-elect Tami Smith and longtime friend of the court reporting community passes.
January 27, 2012 — Major grant to court reporting studies in CA
Having become aware of the benefits of the profession, one California school hopes to increase its recruits to their court reporting department - starting with a healthy grant.
January 27, 2012 — State Court budget cuts hit NYC
More on the budget cuts in our nation's state courts. Read what The Wall Street Journal says about this crisis and the reaction in NYC.
January 26, 2012 — Illinois courts approve camera use
The Illinois Supreme Court agrees to allow cameras to capture litigations.
January 25, 2012 — CCRA President and NCRA member steps up to the mic as a StenAdvocate
CCRA President Early Langley gave a prime example of what it means to be a StenAdvocate when she posted a YouTube video that denounced unethical business practices of certain court reporting firms.
January 25, 2012 — NCRF hosts first DAV/VHP Day at NCRA
On Saturday, January 14, 2012, NCRF hosted a Disabled American Veterans/Veterans History Project (DAV/VHP) Day at NCRA Headquarters.
January 25, 2012 — NCSA Governing Board to host first online chat with state leaders
The NCSA Governing Board will be hosting its first online chat this Thursday, January 26th, at 8:00p.m.
January 25, 2012 — Task Force on Contracting releases model legislation
After hundreds of hours of work, NCRA's Task Force on Contracting has published model legislation to help affiliate associations pass laws prohibiting contractual relationships with depositions.
January 25, 2012 — Transcribing lawful records from passionate lawyers
This Virginia Lawyers Weekly article describes the lawyers' role in creating a reputable, lawful court record.
January 23, 2012 — Divorces are taking longer to resolve in New York
Budget cuts and layoffs in the New York state court system are a contributing factor to the length of divorce cases.
January 23, 2012 — Georgia court to regain appropriate budget?
After years of budget cuts, and a dwindling state court system, the outlook is bright according to this article from Gainesville, Ga.
January 23, 2012 — Hall county and state of Georgia’s court budgets could boost
Hall County and the entire state of Georgia’s finances are improving, providing a boost to both after years of cutbacks.
January 23, 2012 — Lengthy divorce process causing major problems in NY
The amount of time it takes a couple to reach a divorce settlement continues to increase as Staten Island courts adjust to budget cuts.
January 23, 2012 — Proposed increase in court record search fees in South Dakota
The House of Representatives in SD is scheduled to vote this week on a proposed increase in fees charged for public court record searches.
January 23, 2012 — Realtime captioning
Deaf and hard of hearing individuals are in need of skilled realtime reporters so that realtime-captioned news can be delivered at its highest quality possible.
January 20, 2012 — 2012 NCRF Veterans History Project Day
On January 14, the National Court Reporters Foundation (NCRF) joined forces once again with the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) and the Library of Congress to contribute to the Veterans History Project.
January 17, 2012 — Early Langley, RMR, publishes article for Orange County Lawyer
NCRA member Early Langley, RMR, published an article entitled “Lost in Digital Translation,” which appeared in the Orange County Lawyer magazine
January 17, 2012 — In his own words: Student Matt Moss’ court reporting mock trial work for Emory
Court reporting student Matt Moss of the Brown College of Court Reporting in Alpharetta, Ga., recently volunteered for a mock trial at Emory Law.
January 17, 2012 — Oregon theater institutes captioning services
The Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) has begun captioning its performances for the deaf and hearing-impaired
January 17, 2012 — StenAdvocates remain vigilant promoting and defending steno
The world of steno has been a very busy place, and its advocates have been active on the profession’s behalf. Across the country, these StenAdvocates have been taking it upon themselves to promote and defend the profession.
January 13, 2012 — Attention Va. attorneys: earn Virginia MCLEs at TechCon
The Virginia State Bar has announced that TechCon, the largest gathering of legal technology professionals in the country, is now approved for Virginia mandatory continuing legal education (MCLE) credit.
January 13, 2012 — Court reporter experiences largest transcription of his 36-year career
One South Dakota court reporter dealt with many of the 'trials and tribulations' of capturing court proceedings following his work on a near monthlong hearing of a convicted murderer.
January 13, 2012 — Nuance Communications and Gracenote to collaborate on next-generation solutions and voice recognition
As consumer demand for content continues to grow and technology evolves, the proposed ten-year strategic partnership aims to bring ease of access and increased usability to various media experiences, namely through the use of voice recognition.
January 12, 2012 — State Courts hit 'boiling point' as budget cuts continue
State officials nationwide are fighting hard to reduce budget cuts that have hindered judicial systems in various states.
January 11, 2012 — NCRA Announces Expedited Delivery of Skills Test Results
Change not only gives candidates same day access to preliminary results online, but also provides access to graded practice tests, as well as to additional online practice materials.
January 11, 2012 — New realtime training task force assembles in Chicago
January 11, 2012 — New realtime training task force assembles in Chicago
January 11, 2012 — Notice: NCRA Annual Convention dates have changed to August 9 – 12, 2012
The 2012 NCRA Annual Convention and Exposition dates have changed from August 2 – 5, 2012 to August 9 - 12, 2012.
January 10, 2012 — Court reporting makes business insider 2012 abundant jobs list
The social services industry has been on the rise creating jobs since 2009, court reporting is on the list.
January 10, 2012 — Hype of Siri
Forbes explains that the current hype of Siri on iPhone 4S is similar to the hype of the GPS at one ti
January 10, 2012 — Movie theatres in Beaver, Pa., accessible to the deaf
Personal closed captioning devices are now available at the Cinemark theatres in Center or Robinson Township for the hearing impaired to use while watching movies.
January 9, 2012 — NCRA Defends Steno Reporting in Letter to the Miami Herald
NCRA President Doug Friend submitted a letter to the editor to the Miami Herald that was published defending the role of the stenographic court reporter in the court system. His submission comes in response to an article published by the Herald that blamed the court reporter for having to retry a convicted criminal.

2011

December

December 28, 2011 — Why Texas State District Courts Switched Back to Using Live Reporters
In hindsight, switching away from using live court reporters in favor of audio only systems in the court system may have been a huge mistake.
December 21, 2011 — Donate your vacation property to NCRF
NCRF needs vacation properties for its Fifth Vacation Property Auction to be held at NCRA's Firm Owners Executive Conference in Palm Beach, Florida, February 5-7, 2012.
December 21, 2011 — TechCon responds to NCRA members' thirst for technology training
From iPads to interactive realtime, technology is changing constantly. Court reporting professionals need to stay up-to-date on these advances — as if their profession depended on it.
December 21, 2011 — Volunteer to take down veterans' interviews through NCRF and earn CEUs
NCRF has a wonderful opportunity to interview disabled veterans for the Veterans History Project (VHP) on January 14, 2012, at NCRA headquarters. We need court reporters to record and transcribe them.
December 19, 2011 — Florida courts need more judges
Due to a loss of support staff and expected foreclosure filings in Florida courts, 71 new judges are needed in Florida.
December 19, 2011 — Handwriting recognition app by Google added to Android
The Google Translate app can now recognize seven different languages of handwriting on Android phones
December 19, 2011 — Motion Picture Association of America and closed captioning
The Motion Picture Association of America has proposed a new comprehensive and systematic voluntary approach of closed captioning to the FCC.
December 16, 2011 — 25 worst passwords of 2011
Think you have a clever password? You may have the same clever idea as everyone else.
December 16, 2011 — CART plays an important role at the New York Public Library
Brigid Cahalan, from New York Public Library Outreach, discusses how CART services are integrated into their library system.
December 16, 2011 — Electronic recording failure damages case
In Juneau, Alaska, a missing warrant hearing due to a failed electronic record is throwing a wrench into a theft case.
December 16, 2011 — Michael Rogers of Practical Futurist confirmed as special guest speaker for TechCon
NCRA is proud to announce that Michael Rogers, author, journalist, and futurist, is confirmed as a guest speaker for a special combined session at TechCon 2012.
December 16, 2011 — Smartphones pose difficulties when validating evidence
While smartphones can often provide valuable evidence in trial, one family court in Florida is finding that mobile interactions can be less than reliable.
December 16, 2011 — Technology brings headaches, help to Wash. courtrooms
While wireless technology can pose some difficulty when it comes to leaking information from inside the courtoom (i.e., jurors tweeting about the case), it can also make some processes quicker and easier.
December 15, 2011 — Realtime writing in Canada
In order to prepare for the trial, we were first made aware of certain restrictions placed on the Internet streaming by the court. While court trials are open to the public (as this one was), there was an exclusion of witnesses since they weren’t allowed to hear anyone else testify, so any type of "open" streaming could not be tolerated.
December 9, 2011 — Former NCRA president SueLynn Morgan resigns membership
The NCRA Board of Directors received notice from former president SueLynn Morgan on December 5th, through her attorney, that she had resigned her NCRA membership.
December 9, 2011 — “People to People” Donates Free Trip to NCRF
People to People Citizen Ambassador Programs is coordinating a delegation of professionals specializing in court reporting who will travel to Brazil from October 20-26, 2012.
December 7, 2011 — Karen Larsen, RPR
The court reporting community has lost a friend, mentor, and a tireless champion for our profession. Karen Louise Larsen, RPR, passed away November 19, 2011, at the age of 74.
December 7, 2011 — Update from the reporters of the Michael Jackson trial
Jackson’s mother, Katherine, dabbed at her eyes; Jermaine Jackson was perched on the edge of his seat so as to not miss a syllable that was spoken; Dr. Murray's mother prayed; and, still, the doctor remained emotionless and unexpressive.
December 5, 2011 — Budget cuts in Luzerne County, PA courts
The commissioners of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania plan to cut court funding by $5.5 million
December 5, 2011 — Deaf Rockville teen helped out by manager at cinema
A deaf teenager girl in Rockville, MD recently was accommodated by a helpful manager at a movie theatre who made sure his movies displayed closed-captions despite glitches at the start of the film.
December 5, 2011 — French closed captioning standards approved by CRTC
As of Thursday, December 1, the CRTC approved mandatory standards for closed captioning in the French language
December 2, 2011 — Distinguished Service Award Nominations Now Open
The Distinguished Service Award encourages and recognizes work amounting to distinguished service by individual members of NCRA for the benefit of the reporting profession.

November

November 29, 2011 — Subtitles key to powerful online videos
A subtitled video makes for far more powerful content, Forbes argues.
November 21, 2011 — NCRA Executive Director Mark Golden to Leave Association in May 2012
Mark Golden, executive director and chief executive officer of the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA), announced today that he will leave the association upon the expiration of his current contract.
November 18, 2011 — Arizona Movie Theatres Install Closed Captioning Equipment
A legal agreement initiated by blind and deaf customers helped Harkins Theatres to begin installing closed captioning equipment.
November 18, 2011 — Criminal Cases Begin Using Electronic Evidence
A vehicle’s “event data recorder” is capable of recording a driver’s behavior.
November 14, 2011 — Alexander Gallo Holdings’ sale approved
Alexander Gallo Holdings, LLC received court approval for its sale to Bayside Capital, Inc.
November 8, 2011 — BBC voice recognition captioning angers viewers
Captioning errors on the BBC’s live shows have been drawing negative attention from consumers and the media. Stories in major media outlets have mocked the network’s “ludicrous” computer-generated captions.
November 8, 2011 — Changes at Gallaudet spark debate over deaf culture
Gallaudet University is widely known as a higher education institution for the deaf and hard-of-hearing. In recent years, however, an unprecedented number of incoming students to Gallaudet don’t fit the traditional mold of students coming from schools for the deaf who use sign language to communicate.
November 8, 2011 — Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing children at increased risk of bullying
A child who is deaf or hard-of-hearing faces unique challenges in keeping pace with his or her classmates. Add bullying to the mix and you have a problem that can be overwhelming for the student, the parents, and the school staff.
November 8, 2011 — ESPN releases captioning video
Global sports television network ESPN has released a video showing how realtime stenographic captioners provide 100 percent coverage for its six domestic networks, two international networks, and numerous online offerings.
November 8, 2011 — FCC reverses almost 300 captioning exemptions
In response to numerous calls for review from deaf and hard-of-hearing advocacy groups, the FCC has reversed a 2006 order that allowed hundreds of organizations to claim exemptions from captioning requirements.
November 8, 2011 — Hidden Content In Your Documents: What You Don't Know Can Be Dangerous
Scott Smull, CEO of Workshare discusses the risks of unknown data lurking in your documents. Republished with permission from The Metropolitan Corporate Counse, learn how you can protect yourself against unwanted problems that arise from unintended metadata.
November 8, 2011 — MTV explores the lives of deaf college students on ‘Quiet Campus’
mtvU, MTV’s college network, has released a new reality series called Quiet Campus, which chronicles the experience of deaf students at Washington, D.C.’s Gallaudet University, a well-known higher education institution for the deaf and hard-of-hearing.
November 8, 2011 — Mobile Apps increasingly integrated into higher education
A recent nationwide survey from the Campus Computing Project showed dramatic growth in the use of mobile computing on college campuses over the past year.
November 8, 2011 — NAD urges White House to make disability part of diversity in judicial nominations
In a statement released in September, the National Association of the Deaf issued a call for the White House to make disability a part of its efforts to increase judicial diversity.
November 8, 2011 — NCRA promotes captioning quality standards
NCRA offered strong comments in favor of captioning standards in response to recent FCC proposed rulemaking. NCRA’s stance reaffirmed the Video Programming and Accessibility Advisory Committee’s (VPAAC) assertion that regulations related to closed captioning “should address caption completeness, placement, accuracy, and timing.”
November 8, 2011 — Sony captioning glasses show promise for mixed audiences
Leading electronics manufacturer Sony recently released lightweight captioning glasses for closed caption viewing and audio playback by people with hearing and visual disabilities.
November 8, 2011 — VITAC gets spooky for Halloween
VITAC continued their Halloween tradition this past October of providing closed captioning for a public domain horror flick.
November 4, 2011 — Budget Cuts Expected to Increase Jail Population in Morgan County, AL
Due to large state budget cuts, many court jobs have been cut, leading to around 200 criminal cases being backlogged.
November 4, 2011 — ESPN and Closed Captioning
If it wasn't for court reporters, ESPN would not be able to fully function. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requires every domestic network on ESPN to be 100 percent closed-captioned. ESPN has six domestic networks and also Video on Demand (VOD), Pay-Per-View, Goal Line and Buzzer Beater, espn.com, espn3.com, and two international networks that are all captioned.
November 4, 2011 — New $123M Courts Complex in Norfolk
Due to aging facilities dating back to the 1960s and 1970s, the city of Norfolk, Virginia has decided to complete a new court complex.
November 4, 2011 — Stenograph Aims to be Eco-Friendly
In an effort to be eco-friendly, Stenograph is offering $750 cash back for outdated writers.
November 4, 2011 — Task Force on Contracting (TFOC) holds in-person meeting
NCRA's Task Force on Contracting (TFOC) held a meeting in Chicago, Ill., from October 29 to 30 to discuss plans for the 2011-2012 year. The task force is making progress toward assisting our affiliate associations with enforcement of existing legislation of third-party contractual relationships across the country.
November 2, 2011 — November Board of Directors Meeting
In recent years, NCRA has expanded access to its Board meetings as a means of elevating levels of transparency and member access to the governance of the association.

October

October 27, 2011 — NCRA Launches New Logo to Coincide with Era of Member Empowerment
Learn more about the new logo, new site, and new direction for NCRA
October 27, 2011 — NCRA Website Under Construction
Learn more about the new website construction and how to report any usability issues.
October 20, 2011 — 12 Reasons You Should Be Providing Daily Copy
As part of the Writing Our Future initiative, NCRA members identified the increasing demand for paperless court reporting as one of the trends that will change the profession in the future.
October 20, 2011 — Georgia Board of Court Reporting Holds Town Hall Meeting on Regarding Current Issues in Georgia
On October 1, 2011, the Georgia Board of Court Reporting held a town hall meeting in Savannah, Ga., on all current issues of concern to Georgia court reporters. Among the subjects covered were third-party contractual relationships among court reporting firms.
October 20, 2011 — Grace Period for Enforcement of NCRA Code of Professional Ethics Gift Giving Rules Ends October 31st
This spring, the NCRA Board of Directors approved new gift giving rules set forth in Provision 8 of the Code of Professional Ethics. The Board also approved a grace period for members to have time to learn about these new rules and make the appropriate changes to their marketing strategies.
October 20, 2011 — JCR Is Seeking Tax Tips
Are you a freelancer or an official who has great ideas on how to help ease tax preparation? If so, the JCR team wants to hear from you.
October 20, 2011 — Join NCRA in the Walk4Hearing
The NCRA CART and Captioning Communities of Interest are sponsoring a team for the November 6, 2011, Walk4Hearing in Washington, D.C., and we need your help!
October 20, 2011 — NCRA Promotes High-Quality Captioning Standards to FCC
NCRA offered strong comments on FCC proposed rulemaking regarding closed captioning on broadcast television programming placed on the Internet.
October 20, 2011 — NCRF Awarded $5,000 for Veterans History Project
The Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Charitable Service Trust has awarded a $5,000 grant to the National Court Reporters Foundation (NCRF) in order to expand the Veterans History Project (VHP) by interviewing and transcribing the oral histories of disabled American veterans who are members of the DAV.
October 20, 2011 — November Board of Directors Meeting
In recent years, NCRA has expanded access to its Board meetings as a means of elevating levels of transparency and member access to the governance of the association. That has included prompt publishing of summaries of the Board meetings as well as encouraging any members who wish to attend the meetings in person to do so.
October 20, 2011 — Stanislaus County Superior Court in California Goes Green
Case file documents in the Stanislaus County Superior Court are now being scanned electronically to cut back on paper use in a process called the Transcript Assembly Program.
October 20, 2011 — Strong NCRA Presence at CTC Will Have Lasting Effects
NCRA had a significant presence at the 2011 Court Technology Conference (CTC) from October 4-6, in Long Beach, Calif.
October 20, 2011 — Student Initiatives Program
Dave Wynne, Senior Vice President for Sales and Education, Stenograph L.L.C., is promoting NCRF's Student Initiatives Program by sending out a blog entitled, "Hone Your Court Reporting Skills and Honor America's Heroes."
October 20, 2011 — Texas Judge Keeps Staff Through 25-Year Seat
Collin County, Texas, Judge Jerry Lewis retired after a 25-year seat. Judge Lewis kept the same staff for 25 years, including NCRA member, Marigay Black.
October 20, 2011 — Update from the Reporters of the Michael Jackson Trial
What's new with the Conrad Murray trial? Mavis Theodorou and Patricia McNeal, the official court reporters covering the involuntary manslaughter trial of Michael Jackson's doctor, took advantage of an unexpected break in their schedule to provide an update on what has happened so far.
October 20, 2011 — Webinar to Be Held for Potential Board Members -- NCRA Wants You!
Just what IS involved in NCRA Board service? What are the duties and responsibilities? Here's your chance to find out! A web-based orientation will be held on Tuesday, October 25, at 9:00pm EDT for anyone interested in seeking future Board service.
October 20, 2011 — Wisconsin to Celebrate Court Reporters Week
On September 26, 2011, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker signed the proclamation decreeing that October 16-21 would be "Court Reporters Week."
October 6, 2011 — California Launches New Prison Policy
California will launch their plan for realigning prisons beginning this month by sending nonviolent felons to local facilities as opposed to state facilities.
October 6, 2011 — Ethics First Participation Requirements Updated
Based primarily on the results from Writing Our Future, the Ethics First program has become an NCRA members-only benefit. This creates another reason for nonmembers to join NCRA - to use the Ethics First logo as an added marketing tool for themselves and their firms.
October 6, 2011 — Ethics First Task Force Releases New Logos
The Ethics First Task Force has released new versions of its logo to further differentiate Ethics First participation from NCRA individual membership. The logos recognize NCRA members who have made a commitment to abide by and promote the rules of the Code of Professional Ethics (COPE), particularly with regard to gift-giving.
October 6, 2011 — More Hearing Students at Gallaudet University
An increasing number of students are attending Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. A traditionally deaf and hard-of-hearing educational institution.
October 6, 2011 — NCRA and Schools Celebrate National Punctuation Day
NCRA celebrated National Punctuation Day on September 24, 2011, by offering schools a punctuation-free version of a speed contest legal opinion to punctuate.
October 6, 2011 — New Jersey Synagogue Uses CART in Services
For the fourth year, a New Jersey Synagogue is offering CART during High Holy Day services, which began last night.
October 4, 2011 — NCRA Aggressively Pushing Steno at CTC 2011
This week, NCRA – along with three partners – will be aggressively promoting stenographic court reporting at the Court Technology Conference in Long Beach, Calif.
October 3, 2011 — Reporting the Michael Jackson Trial: What Court Reporters Want to Know
NCRA has been in touch with the official court reporters who are covering the involuntary manslaughter trial of Michael Jackson’s doctor. They are Mavis Theodorou and Patricia McNeal, official reporters for the Los Angeles Superior Court. They have agreed to keep us posted on the news that court reporters want to know about the case.

September

September 30, 2011 — Heidi Thomas Appointed as Director of NCRA
Heidi Thomas, a national broadcast captioner based in Atlanta, has been appointed as a director to the Board of the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA).
September 26, 2011 — A Break in Microsoft's Cloud
The first email hit TechCrunch’s tip line at 11:32 EDT. Others quickly followed saying the same thing: major Microsoft cloud services are down worldwide.
September 26, 2011 — Apple, Dropbox Back Privacy Bill
With many Americans leading an increasingly digital life, it's not surprising that the government is turning to things like cell phone and email records when conducting investigations.
September 26, 2011 — Captioning for Ducks
Attentive Duck fans at Oregon’s first home football game of the season at Autzen Stadium on Saturday may have noticed strings of words flashing across the Duck Vision scoreboard in-sync with the announcements by game officials.
September 26, 2011 — FaceBook Testing Realtime Translation
The ability to communicate with ease across languages and cultures has so far been the stuff of futurists and science fiction writers.
September 26, 2011 — Keep Confidential Information Out of Email
The New Workshare Protect 7 helps reduce the number of times people accidentally email documents with hidden comments and suggested edits not intended for public distribution.
September 26, 2011 — PACER Fees to Rise
The basic fee federal courts charge for electronic copies of court records will be hiked by 25%, a panel overseeing federal court administration announced Tuesday.
September 26, 2011 — Realtime Hookup Videos
NCRA's Realtime Systems Administrator Committee has put together some videos dealing with hooking up to realtime.
September 26, 2011 — Technology in the News
Links to various technology related stories in the news.
September 26, 2011 — Using an iPad in a Jury Trial
In April of 2011, we began the trial. We structured our trial plan and presentation around these overarching themes, using the ABC Regulations and Dram Shop provisions as key demonstrative exhibits.
September 26, 2011 — Wireless Hacking Is No Joke
Midsummer in Las Vegas is to geeks, hackers, and IT security pros what mid-April in Augusta is to golf fanatics: an opportunity to watch the best in their respective fields strut their stuff.
September 21, 2011 — Alexander Gallo Holdings Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
Alexander Gallo Holdings LLC (AGH), parent company to Esquire Solutions, filed for Chapter 11 restructuring in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.
September 21, 2011 — Brown & Gallo, LLC, Reprimanded for Incentive Gift-Giving Violations
In September 2011, the Board of Court Reporting of the Judicial Council of Georgia issued a public reprimand to Brown & Gallo, LLC, and a $3,000 fine for its admitted unethical conduct with regard to incentive gift-giving.
September 21, 2011 — NCRA Legislative Efforts Result in $979,000 of Grants to 3 Schools
Huntington Junior College (WV), Cuyahoga Community College (OH), and the New York Career Institute (NY) have received a pair of grants from the Department of Education amounting to $979,000.
September 21, 2011 — NCRF Awarded Grant to Expand VHP
The Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Charitable Service Trust has awarded a $5,000 grant to the National Court Reporters Foundation (NCRF) in order to expand the Veterans History Project (VHP).
September 19, 2011 — Court Reporter Shortage Delays Murder Retrial
Raleigh, NC Superior Court Judge has delayed the retrial in Jason Young’s case.
September 19, 2011 — Record Fees Increasing in Federal Courts
A 25 percent rise in the charge for electronic copies of court records in Federal Courts was announced last Tuesday.
September 19, 2011 — Texas County Court Dates Vanish from Docket
Due to a glitch in the court-docketing system in Parker County Court, hearing and trial dates for all pending cases disappeared on September 2.
September 16, 2011 — Thank You, Student Sponsors!
For several years, NCRA has asked members to donate money to sponsor students at the NCRA Convention and Exposition. The donated money is divided among the students who attend the Student Seminar Program and mailed to them after convention.
September 6, 2011 — Earn Professional Development Credits by Reading Al Betz's Books
Al Betz, an author, court reporter, and owner of Outfluence, LLC, has three books available for purchase in our online store - Outfluence, Polishing the Pearl, and Powerwriters.
September 6, 2011 — Honor America's Wartime Veterans
On September 11, 2011, the tenth anniversary of the horrific terrorist attacks on our nation, America will pause to honor and remember those who died.
September 6, 2011 — Iowa Hosts Federal Experiment
Iowa’s Southern District Federal Courts will now have cameras in their courtrooms again after a three-year absence due to budget cuts as an experiment in the Federal Courts.
September 6, 2011 — Partnership Announced Between Fusion Reporting and Paragon
Paragon Legal and Fusion Reporting, both legal services companies out of Atlanta, Georgia, have recently announced a partnership in order to provide direct access to legal services and solutions.
September 6, 2011 — Pay Raises Proposed for New York Judges
A New York State commission has recommended that state judges receive a 27% pay raise over the next three years.
September 6, 2011 — Students - You Are the Future of the Court Reporting Profession!
Court reporting students are the future of the profession. That's why the National Court Reporters Foundation (NCRF) has created the Student Initiatives Program to help you achieve your goals.

August

August 30, 2011 — County Praises California Computer System - Others Hate It
A state computer project is being touted as an electronic super train that in about five years will link all the courthouses in California and law enforcement agencies to share information.
August 30, 2011 — Court Reporting School Distinguishes Steno from Voice
When deciding to train to become a court reporter, students want to know the difference between machine court reporting (steno) and voice court reporting (mask).
August 30, 2011 — NCRA Expo Vendor Video Tour
NCRA's Technology Evaluation Committee takes you on a video tour of the 2011 NCRA Expo at the Annual Convention in Las Vegas. The committee focused its efforts on new products and services being offered at the Expo.
August 30, 2011 — Pennsylvania Justice Touts Videoconferencing
Toward the beginning of his 13-year tenure with the U.S. Air Force Reserve, Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Seamus P. McCaffery was given a preview of the cost-saving and practical benefits of videoconferencing.
August 30, 2011 — Pennsylvania Supreme Court Proceeding to Be Televised
Next month, people will be able to watch from the comfort of their living rooms as lawyers argue before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court the fate of two people on death row.
August 30, 2011 — Product Spotlight
YesLaw Online Case Repository is a web-based repository for deposition and court content.
August 30, 2011 — Report from Visionary Legal's Voice Recognition Realtime Expo
"Evaluation" was the goal as several members of NCRA and TCRA attended the Expo presented by Visionary Legal.
August 30, 2011 — Repository Offers PACER Court Records
Want to see the federal indictment of a mortgage fraudster? You got it. Need the docket for a U.S. appeals court case? It’s yours. All with the click of a mouse — and your 16-digit credit card number.
August 30, 2011 — Skype Used in Custody Case
A deported Mexican couple won back custody of their two U.S.-born daughters in part thanks to testimony given over Skype, an apparent first in a U.S. custody case.
August 30, 2011 — Technology in the News
Technology stories in the news.
August 30, 2011 — West Case Notebook Now Integrates with Worldox
Thomson Reuters today announced that West Case Notebook, West’s case analysis software and part of the Westlaw Litigator Suite, now integrates with Worldox® Document Management System (DMS) software.
August 17, 2011 — Board of Directors Meeting Summary
The Board of Directors Meeting Summary from the July 25-26 & 30, 2011, meeting in Las Vegas is now available.
August 17, 2011 — Changes to NCRA Advertising Policy
The NCRA Board of Directors voted to change NCRA's advertising policy so that nonmember court reporters or court reporting firms headed by a nonmember would be subject to NCRA's Code of Professional Ethics.
August 17, 2011 — Ethics First Task Force Releases Second Video Aimed at Attorneys
The NCRA Ethics First Task Force has developed and released a new video targeted at attorneys, relaying to them the potential consequences of incentive gift-giving.
August 17, 2011 — Task Force on Contracting Meets in Las Vegas
NCRA's newest task force, the Task Force on Contracting (TFOC), met in person during NCRA's Annual Convention in Las Vegas.
August 16, 2011 — Casey Anthony Trial Webstreamed
Read about how the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida utilized video technology to cover the Casey Anthony trial.
August 16, 2011 — Closed Captioning Available at University of Oklahoma Football Games
On September 3, The University of Oklahoma will begin providing closed captioning services for the first time at their football games on their video board.
August 16, 2011 — HarQen Develops a Voice Service Product Symposia
HarQuen is currently developing a voice service product called Symposia, a smartphone/desktop program which aims to capture records of meetings and interviews for analyzing and sharing purposes using social media and database integration.
August 3, 2011 — Different Approaches Taken to Closed Captioning and Transcription
In an effort to better accommodate hearing impaired students, many colleges and universities are renewing their emphasis on closed captioning in the classroom.
August 3, 2011 — Harry Potter Presented with Captioning
Last Wednesday July 27, a theatre in the Midwest US showed “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II” in closed captioning for the hearing impaired.
August 3, 2011 — NCRA PAC Raises Nearly $4,000 at Annual Convention
Over the course of NCRA's Annual Convention in Las Vegas, NCRA PAC successfully raised nearly $4,000 through our “Spin to Win” iPad2 giveaway.
August 3, 2011 — NCSA Body Passes Two Resolutions at Annual Meeting
The NCSA body approved two resolutions, which will now go to the NCRA Board of Directors. Resolutions 11-01 and 11-02, both submitted by the California Court Reporters Association (CCRA), passed the NCSA body unanimously.
August 3, 2011 — New Services and Name for Worcester Court Reporting Firm
The Varallo Group, previously known as “Court Reporting & Management Services,” announced this week that they will now offer additional services to their business including sales support, marketing, and website design.

July

July 30, 2011 — Brock Wins Speed Contest; Bryce Is New Realtime Champ
Alan Brock, RDR, CRR, of Boston, Mass., won NCRA’s 2011 Speed Contest with a combined score of 99.265 percent.
July 30, 2011 — Karen Yates Receives NCRF’s Aurelio Award
The NCRF 2011 Aurelio Award winner was Karen Yates, RPR, CRR, CBC, CCP, FAPR, of Minden, Nev.
July 30, 2011 — Seven New Fellows Named at Annual Convention
The 2011 Fellows were announced at the Awards Luncheon on Saturday, July 30, 2011
July 29, 2011 — Arnella Sims Awarded 2011 Distinguished Service Award
Arnella I. Sims, RPR, CRR, FAPR, of Los Angeles, Calif., was honored with the 2011 Distinguished Service Award.
July 29, 2011 — Official Election Results
Three contested elections for board and officer positions were conducted at the meeting. As provided for in the Bylaws, all NCRA voting members were able to participate in the final voting online.
July 22, 2011 — 10 Alternatives to Dropbox
Dropbox is a hugely popular “cloud-based” file sharing service (and app) that allows you to synchronize files among different computers.
July 22, 2011 — Behind the Pink Noise
It starts like this: "May we approach, Your Honor?" Any veteran court observer knows what this means.
July 22, 2011 — Faster Transcriptions With "Listen N Write"
Many occupations require individuals to take recordings of meetings and interviews to review later.
July 22, 2011 — Google Scholar Tips
Google Scholar came online in November 2009, offering advanced legal research to everyone.
July 22, 2011 — Technology in the News
Technology stories in the news.
July 22, 2011 — Updates to NCRA Advisory Opinions Offer Guidance on Gift-Giving Policy
The Board of Directors approved a change to Provision 8 of the Code of Professional Ethics in March 2011, so that there is now a distinction between thank you (or marketing) gifts and incentive gifts (gifts given in direct exchanged for future work).
July 22, 2011 — Voice and Translation Services Still Not to Par
Voice and translation services always look great in demos, but never work in the real world.
July 22, 2011 — Web to Replace Lawyers?
Negotiating a settlement is expensive and difficult -- which is why automating the process so that a fee can be agreed on in minutes is so appealing.
July 22, 2011 — Why Realtime?
A recent discussion by members of the Technology Evaluation Committee ranged from thoughts about the use of iPads to provide realtime in various parts of the country to different ways to overcome attorneys' objection to having realtime.
July 20, 2011 — Read Letter from NCRA President on Writing Our Future Project
The initial outcomes from our ambitious, all-inclusive Writing Our Future project.
July 15, 2011 — NCRA Members Dominate Intersteno Speed Competition
US steno writers performed exceptionally well in the Shorthand/Speech Capturing and Realtime contests at the 48th Intersteno World Congress.
July 14, 2011 — Degree in CART Enabled One to Type 220 WPM
Ms. Ariana Jordan received a degree in communication access real time translation (CART) reporting from St. Louis Community College at Meramec and now regularly works for MTV, ESPN, and PBS.
July 14, 2011 — Gadsden State Community College Campus Convention
NCRA held its eighth mini campus convention on June 7 at Gadsden State Community College in Gadsden, Ala. NCRA Board Secretary-Treasurer Bruce Matthews, who served as the keynote speaker for the 23 students in attendance.
July 14, 2011 — NCRA Reaches Out to Students through Campus Conventions
NCRA’s most recent campus convention enticed so many students to attend that it was moved into the prestigious Ceremonial Courtroom of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
July 14, 2011 — New York Career Institute Mini Convention
NCRA made arrangements to hold its ninth mini campus convention in the prestigious Ceremonial Courtroom in Brooklyn.
July 14, 2011 — Ohio Court Reporters Association Defeats Potentially Damaging Bill
On June 30, the Ohio Court Reporters Association's significant grassroots effort to remove potentially destructive language from the must-pass budget bill officially ended in success.
July 14, 2011 — Prince Institute Campus Convention
NCRA’s first mini campus convention of 2011 was held at Prince Institute of Professional Studies in Montgomery, Ala., on April 18.
July 14, 2011 — Recordings from Virginia Tech Shooter's Civil Commitment Found Inaudible
The audio tapes recovered from the high-profile case of the convicted Virginia Tech shooter Seung-Hui Cho's 2005 civil commitment hearing serve as another piece of evidence for using stenographic court reporters as opposed to digital audio recording (DAR).
July 14, 2011 — Sage College Campus Convention
Sage College in Moreno Valley, Calif., was the site of the April 30 NCRA campus convention – with 110 students in attendance! NCRA Board Director Kimi George kicked off the day with an inspiring keynote presentation.
July 12, 2011 — Disney Designed Audio Description Device Is Introduced
Disney recently announced that starting July 6, guests with visual disabilities will be able to explore Disneyland through a new, Disney-designed device that provides audio description of Disneyland’s outdoor areas.
July 12, 2011 — NCRA to Have Major Presence at Intersteno in Paris
NCRA will field one of the largest delegations to the Intersteno World Congress, in Paris, July 10-15, thanks in large part to the efforts of a number of NCRA volunteers, including Virgene Biggers, RPR, and Teri Gaudet, CRI, CPE.
July 12, 2011 — The Growing Court Reporting Industry
The five largest court reporting companies on this year’s list had 49 court reporters on staff, compared with 40 at last year’s top five.

June

June 28, 2011 — Google and YouTube Continue Work on Captioning for The Deaf
Making strides to accommodate the deaf and hearing impaired, Google and YouTube engineers are working to improve software that can automatically add captions to all videos.
June 28, 2011 — The Khan Academy Provides Subtitles to Videos Around the World
Thanks to community-provided subtitles, The Khan Academy is broadening its efforts beyond the English-speaking world.
June 23, 2011 — Holding Court
Eight ideas to help the judiciary make wise technology decisions when facing severe budget cuts.
June 23, 2011 — ICANN't Believe It: New Internet Rules Will Be a Mess
Have you heard about this impending disaster? ICANN, the group that oversees the Internet's domain name system, has decided to expand the Web's set of available domain suffixes.
June 23, 2011 — Re-examining Dropbox and Its Alternatives
Recent revelations about privacy concerns with Dropbox have led many people — including me — to think about changing my practices regarding online file-storage and -synchronization providers.
June 23, 2011 — Recognizing Voices in the Trickiest Terrain: The Battlefield
It's not here yet, but the United States military has plans to perfect technology that would enable combat medics to dictate treatment notes for casualties on the battlefield.
June 23, 2011 — Restrictive Rules Announced for Federal Courts Camera Experiment
The upcoming experiment with camera coverage of federal district courts will be governed by a restrictive set of rules.
June 23, 2011 — Technology in the News
Technology stories in the news.
June 23, 2011 — Top 12 Reasons Attorneys Should Be Using Technology in Trial
Trial Presentation Consultant Robb Helt, of Litigation Resource Group, recently polled his jury, shortly after they came back with a favorable verdict.
June 23, 2011 — Trojans, Viruses, Worms: How Does Malware Get on PCs and Macs?
The hardest part of talking about computer security is getting everyone to agree on the nature of the problem.
June 23, 2011 — Web Streaming Court Proceedings
At the time the decision was made to pursue that story, no one at Government Video knew that a high profile murder trial would be streamed across the country, possibly around the world.
June 15, 2011 — Board Members Can Make a Difference!
NCRA Board Member, Nancy Varallo, owner of Court Reporting & Management Services of Worcester, MA, recently contacted the National Court Reporters Foundation (NCRF) regarding her interest in hosting a Veterans History Project (VHP) Day in Massachusetts.
June 15, 2011 — Courts Upend Budgets as States Look for Savings
State budget battles — usually between governors and legislatures — are increasingly involving another branch of government, the judiciary.
June 15, 2011 — Lifeline for Hearing-Impaired at Ballparks
Court Stenographer Patti White brought her excellent stenography skills to the St. Louis Cardinals by becoming their first captioner.
June 15, 2011 — Making Education Accessible
In 2011, online accessibility for all students is a key concern in higher education. Dartmouth College is one institution in particular that is trying to make all online mediums available to its students.
June 15, 2011 — NCRA Offers Strong Support to Captioned Radio Pilot Project
On June 13, NCRA submitted a strongly worded letter to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) requesting funding for the Captioned Radio Pilot Launch, a joint project between National Public Radio (NPR) and Towson University.
June 15, 2011 — NCRA Takes the Lead in Pursuing Access for Hearing-Impaired
On Monday, June 6th, the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Alliance (DHHA), an organization that NCRA is actively involved in, submitted a letter to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to make accommodations for the estimated 30 million deaf and hard-of-hearing Americans.
June 2, 2011 — Department of Education Issues New Gainful Employment Regulations
On June 2nd, the Department of Education issued new regulations on career and for-profit colleges. These changes include the potentially detrimental "Gainful Employment" regulations that were first brought up in July 2010.
June 2, 2011 — Wireless Task Force Releases Final Wireless White Paper
The Wireless Task Force is pleased to announce that its white paper, titled The Secure Delivery of Transcripts Using Wireless and Internet-Based Realtime Methods, has been officially completed.

May

May 31, 2011 — Just What You Needed: Higher Taxes
Yahoo Finance and SmartMoney discuss the Social Security tax and how it affects the self-employed freelancer.
May 31, 2011 — Stage Aid for Deaf Audience
The use of electronic captions at cultural theatre venues has been promoted by a group of Jewish deaf and hard of hearing theatre lovers.
May 31, 2011 — The Wrongful Conviction as Way of Life
This article describes wrongful conviction in great detail; Brandon Garrett analyzes the study of many people getting convicted for a crime they didn’t commit.
May 25, 2011 — Dropbox Accused of Misleading Customers on Security
A complaint was filed with the Federal Trade Commission last week alleging that the popular Dropbox file-sharing service has been misleading users about the security and privacy of their files.
May 25, 2011 — Livescribe Smartpen Connects with Facebook, Google Docs, and Evernote
Think about updating your Facebook status with pen and paper or sending an e-mail directly from an old-fashioned notebook (the paper kind).
May 25, 2011 — Pros and Cons of Cloud Computing
Increasing costs are pressuring the manufacturing companies to take a closer look at the various resources that can provide services to the companies on the Internet itself, thereby saving costs and allowing easy access to the stored data.
May 25, 2011 — Six Reasons Why Chromebooks Are a Bad Idea
Not everyone thinks Google's attempt to reinvent the computer will work. When it took the wraps off its stripped down, nothing-but-the-browser Chromebooks this week, Google was attempting its own iPad moment.
May 25, 2011 — Stenograph Introduces Built-in WiFi Option for Diamante Writer
Stenograph recently announced its new, built-in WiFi option for the Diamante writer.
May 25, 2011 — Superior Court of California, County of Santa Clara Automates
Anoto Group today announced that the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Clara is improving efficiency and ergonomics for its clerks by adopting digital pen and paper technology.
May 25, 2011 — Technology Boom Triggers Privacy Alarm among Florida Lawyers
Big Brother is here, and he is us. The conspicuous consumption that drives the market for smartphones and state-of-the-art gaming systems may make privacy -- even privacy expectations guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution.
May 25, 2011 — Technology in the News
Technology articles in the news.
May 25, 2011 — To Skype or not to Skype
The growth of video communications hit a new milestone on May 10 as Skype, the VoIP peer-to-peer provider, was purchased by Microsoft in a deal worth $8.5 billion.
May 25, 2011 — Using "Save As" to Conform to PDF/A
Using "Save As" is perhaps the easiest way to apply the transformations necessary to existing PDFs, such as embedding fonts, setting color spaces, and the other 20 or so checks that Acrobat can undertake to conform to the PDF/A specification.
May 25, 2011 — Using an iPad to Recreate a Scene in a Deposition
When taking a deposition of an adverse witness, I sometimes want to pin down a witness on exactly where he was standing or where some other events took place.
May 17, 2011 — Paulita Kundid Selected to Serve on the Florida Bar Citizens Forum
NCRA would like to congratulate member Paulita Kundid, FAPR, RPR, CLVS, FPR for her recent selection to the Florida Bar Citizens Forum.
May 16, 2011 — Meet the Accidental Entrepreneurs
The first Fortune story in this article is about a court reporter who acquired so many clients throughout the years that she was able to start her own court reporting firm with employees without even planning on it!
May 16, 2011 — Netflix Adds Captioning to iOS Apps
Adding captioning to movies in Netflix for the iPad, iPod touch and iPhone is going to be a big deal for a lot of people, and Netflix has added that feature today.
May 16, 2011 — Technology Can't Replace Court Reporters
This article defends the court reporting profession and its need for real, live, court reporters instead of technology, which has been introduced as a possible replacement for the profession.
May 4, 2011 — California’s Court Reporters Halt Implementation of DAR/ER in State Courts
In late April, the California Court Reporters Association (CCRA) announced a significant legislative success. Assembly Bill 803 would replace official court reporters with ER in 20 percent of courtrooms per year over the next five years, basically phasing out all officials in the state. CCRA led the fight in defeating this destructive legislation operating a significant grassroots campaign to successfully lobby their state legislators.
May 4, 2011 — NCRA's Writing Our Future initiative moves to "Discuss & Debate"
In March and April, more than 2,800 NCRA members took part in a survey as part of the Writing Our Future initiative. Now, the Board is asking for all members to participate in the "Discuss & Debate" phase of the initiative, which begins with the introduction of discussion threads on the NCRA Forum and online chats scheduled for next week.
May 3, 2011 — Montana State Supreme Court Implements Anti-Contracting Language and Gift-Giving Limitations
In a major victory for the impartiality of the record, the Montana State Supreme Court issued an order, which modified the state’s Rules of Civil Procedure to include anti-contracting language and gift-giving limitations.
May 3, 2011 — Strong Grassroots Effort Helps ACRA Defeat Harmful Legislation
Official court reporters in Arizona were under particular attack from their state legislature during the 2011 legislative session. Two identical bills were introduced in the State Senate and State House, which would replace live court reporters in grand jury proceedings with digital audio recording and digital video recording.
May 2, 2011 — Enacting Electronic Records for N.Y. Real Estate
Electronic recording of official real estate documents has begun to be enacted to cut back on paper use and to better retain information over time.
May 2, 2011 — VITAC Captioners Brace for Nonstop Royal Wedding Coverage
The nation’s largest captioning company, VITAC, provided more than 125 hours of Royal Wedding Coverage last Friday on 10 different national TV networks.

April

April 29, 2011 — Courtroom Gets 'Real': Circuit Court Judge Makes Use of Realtime ...
Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Daniel P. Ryan’s courtroom at the Frank Murphy Hall of Justice has gone realtime—as in realtime reporting, that is. “Most people don’t know what realtime is,” said Linda Cavanagh, Ryan’s court reporter of 13 years.
April 29, 2011 — Google--All Ears and Voice
As a research scientist who leads the speech technology efforts at Google, Mike Cohen has a huge task on hand. Speech technology essentially involves speech recognition and synthesis.
April 29, 2011 — Is E-Discovery Becoming Certifiable?
Recently on my blog, I have been posting different viewpoints as to whether the e-discovery industry should have its own specialized certification.
April 29, 2011 — Is Stenography a Dying Art?
Court stenographers are being phased out in England and Wales with the last contract - at the Old Bailey - set to expire in March 2012. But what are stenographers, and are they no longer needed?
April 29, 2011 — Lawyers and Their iPads
The 2011 ABA TECHSHOW was a great experience. I'll be writing more about that later. But one of the really remarkable things about the ABA TECHSHOW this year was the number of iPads in evidence.
April 29, 2011 — Metadata, The Freedom of Information Act, and Government Hypocrisy
April 29, 2011 — NCRA News - April 29, 2011
April 29, 2011 — Successful on Purpose: Keith Slyter and His Mobile War Room Command Center
April 29, 2011 — Technology in the News
April 29, 2011 — The New York Times Reports More Than 100,000 Digital Subscribers
April 29, 2011 — Thomson Reuters Announces the Release of LiveNote Stream Manager 1.6.1
April 29, 2011 — iPhone 5 Will Debut in September, Sources Say
April 19, 2011 — NCRA News - April 19, 2011
April 15, 2011 — NCRA News - April 15, 2011
April 5, 2011 — NCRA News - April 5, 2011
April 5, 2011 — NCRA News - April 5, 2011

2010

December

December 21, 2010 — NCRA News - December 21, 2010
December 16, 2010 — A Documented Success: StenTel Keeps the Information Flowing
December 16, 2010 — Cloak Your Connection to Foil Firesheep Snoopers
December 16, 2010 — E-Filing Holds Promise and Peril for Appellate Attorneys
December 16, 2010 — More Federal Courts Move to Offer Digital Audio Recordings Online
December 16, 2010 — Realtime Reporter's Toolbox — Part II
December 16, 2010 — Technology in the News
December 8, 2010 — NCRA News - December 8, 2010
December 7, 2010 — NCRA News - December 7, 2010
December 1, 2010 — NCRA News - December 1, 2010

November

November 24, 2010 — NCRA News - November 24, 2010
November 19, 2010 — NCRA News - November 19, 2010

October

October 27, 2010 — NCRA News - October 27, 2010
October 21, 2010 — NCRA News - October 21, 2010
October 19, 2010 — NCRA News - October 19, 2010
October 8, 2010 — NCRA News - October 8, 2010
October 6, 2010 — NCRA News - October 6, 2010
October 4, 2010 — NCRA News - October 4, 2010

September

September 29, 2010 — NCRA News - September 29, 2010
September 28, 2010 — NCRA News - September 28, 2010
September 27, 2010 — NCRA News - September 27, 2010
September 2, 2010 — NCRA News - September 2, 2010

August

August 24, 2010 — NCRA News - August 24, 2010
August 12, 2010 — NCRA News - August 12, 2010
August 11, 2010 — NCRA News - August 11, 2010
August 2, 2010 — NCRA News - August 2, 2010

July

July 22, 2010 — NCRA News - July 22, 2010
July 22, 2010 — NCRA News - July 22, 2010
July 9, 2010 — NCRA News - July 9, 2010

June

June 23, 2010 — NCRA News - June 23, 2010

April

April 28, 2010 — NCRA News - April 28, 2010
April 28, 2010 — NCRA News - April 28, 2010
April 28, 2010 — NCRA News - April 28, 2010
April 14, 2010 — NCRA News - April 14, 2010
April 8, 2010 — NCRA News - April 8, 2010
April 7, 2010 — NCRA News - April 7, 2010

March

March 12, 2010 — NCRA News - March 12, 2010
March 12, 2010 — NCRA News - March 12, 2010
March 8, 2010 — NCRA News - March 8, 2010
March 8, 2010 — NCRA News - March 8, 2010

February

February 22, 2010 — NCRA News - February 22, 2010
February 15, 2010 — NCRA News - February 15, 2010

January

January 27, 2010 — NCRA News - January 27, 2010
January 25, 2010 — NCRA News - January 25, 2010

2009

December

December 28, 2009 — NCRA News - December 28, 2009

November

November 11, 2009 — NCRA News - November 11, 2009

August

August 18, 2009 — NCRA News - August 18, 2009

July

July 8, 2009 — NCRA News - July 8, 2009

June

June 11, 2009 — NCRA News - June 11, 2009

May

May 15, 2009 — NCRA News - May 15, 2009

April

April 8, 2009 — NCRA News - April 8, 2009

March

March 17, 2009 — NCRA News - March 17, 2009
March 13, 2009 — NCRA News - March 13, 2009

February

February 11, 2009 — NCRA News - February 11, 2009

January

January 15, 2009 — NCRA News - January 15, 2009
January 7, 2009 — NCRA News - January 7, 2009
January 7, 2009 — NCRA News - January 7, 2009

2008

November

November 12, 2008 — NCRA News - November 12, 2008

September

September 9, 2008 — NCRA News - September 9, 2008

August

August 13, 2008 — NCRA News - August 13, 2008

July

July 9, 2008 — NCRA News - July 9, 2008

June

June 1, 2008 — NCRA News - June 1, 2008

May

May 14, 2008 — NCRA News - May 14, 2008

April

April 2, 2008 — NCRA News - April 2, 2008

March

March 7, 2008 — NCRA News - March 7, 2008

February

February 8, 2008 — NCRA News - February 8, 2008

2007

December

December 6, 2007 — NCRA News - December 6, 2007

November

November 7, 2007 — NCRA News - November 7, 2007

September

September 26, 2007 — NCRA News - September 26, 2007

August

August 25, 2007 — NCRA News - August 25, 2007

July

July 2, 2007 — NCRA News - July 2, 2007

April

April 26, 2007 — NCRA News - April 26, 2007

March

March 28, 2007 — NCRA News - March 28, 2007

February

February 22, 2007 — NCRA News - February 22, 2007

January

January 24, 2007 — NCRA News - January 24, 2007
Make the Promise
As Americans gather to celebrate Memorial Day, it’s fitting that we remember those who have served in the Armed Forces during periods of war.