URGENT Update!

ATTENTION MEMBERSHIP 

PLEASE READ THIS ENTIRE E-MAIL - IT IS VERY IMPORTANT!

Attached below is proposed Bill No. 844, which is scheduled to go to hearing NEXT FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2019. CCRA has requested that this proposed legislation, initiated by the Connecticut Trial Lawyers Association, be tabled; however, we have been informed by our lobbyist that it was presented this week. This bill, if enacted, will have serious ramifications for reporters and agency owners in our state. This is an attempt to regulate the manner in which court reporters conduct business and bill for their services.
The hearing will be held at 10 a.m., Friday, February 22, 2019, Room 2C of the Legislative Office Building in Hartford.

It is vital that we have your support and that people show up to voice their opposition. Please contact CCRA immediately if you can attend and offer testimony so we can submit your name to our lobbyist. If this is enacted and a reporter is found in violation of any of these provisions, "it shall constitute an unfair trade practice under Chapter 735a of the general statutes."

For your convenience, the text from the PDF of the proposed bill is below the bold line after the link. The actual PDF, with a more aesthetic format, can be found athttps://eur04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cga.ct.gov%2F2019%2FTOB%2Fs%2Fpdf%2F2019SB-00844-R00-SB.PDF&data=02%7C01%7C%7C055fc8f1ac9c436856c608d693bb6e99%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C636858830547262480&sdata=FSZHidkJEN5RxF5pXnly6Oy%2BOco9bqXq2Z61UesoGi8%3D&reserved=0
General Assembly Raised Bill No. 844 January Session, 2019 LCO No. 4035 Referred to Committee on JUDICIARY Introduced by:

 (JUD) AN ACT CONCERNING LEGAL TRANSCRIPT REQUIREMENTS AND THE FEES CHARGED BY COURT REPORTERS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2019) (a) As used in this 2 section:
(1) "Court reporting" means the verbatim transcription of the spoken word in a legal proceeding by stenographic or electronic means;

(2) "Court reporter" means any individual or business entity, foreign or domestic, engaged in the business of court reporting within this state;

(3) "Official court reporter" means a stenographer hired by or 10 appointed by a state or federal authority to make a verbatim written or 11 electronic transcription of the spoken word during a court proceeding, 12 Workers' Compensation Commission proceeding or other official state 13 or federal administrative proceeding;

(4) "Final transcript" means the final transcribed version of the 15 spoken word at a legal proceeding created by a court reporter 16 irrespective of whether such transcribed version is the original or a 17 copy; and 18
(5) "Legal proceeding" includes, but is not limited to: (A) A 19 deposition, whether held within or outside of this state, for a 20 proceeding pending in this state and irrespective of whether such 21 deposition is conducted in person or by remote electronic means, (B) 22 an arbitration proceeding, (C) a mediation proceeding, and (D) any 23 similar proceeding incident to an inchoate or pending legal matter. 24

(b) Any final transcript produced by a court reporter, except an 25 official court reporter, for a legal proceeding within this state shall 26 meet the following "Transcript Format Guidelines" promulgated by the 27 National Court Reporters Association, as amended from time to time: 28

(1) Each page of a final transcript shall contain no fewer than 29 twenty-five typed lines on standard paper eight and one-half by eleven 30 inches in size; 31

(2) Each page of a final transcript shall have no fewer than nine or 32 ten characters per typed inch; 33

(3) The left-hand margin of the each page of a final transcript shall 34 be set at not more than one and three-quarter inches; 35

(4) The right-hand margin of each page of a final transcript shall be 36 set at not more than three-eighths of an inch; 37

(5) Each question and answer shall begin on a separate line; 38

(6) Each question and answer shall begin no more than five spaces 39 from the left-hand margin and the statement following a question or 40 answer shall begin no more than five spaces from the left-hand 41 margin; 42

(7) Any carryover question and answer line shall begin at the left-hand margin;

(8) Any colloquy shall begin no more than fifteen spaces from the 45 left-hand margin and any carryover line of a colloquy shall begin at the 46 left-hand margin; 47

(9) Quoted material shall begin no more than fifteen spaces from the 48 left-hand margin and any carryover line of quoted material shall begin 49 no more than ten spaces from the left-hand margin; and 50

(10) Any parenthetical or exhibit marking shall begin no more than 51 fifteen spaces from the left-hand margin and any carryover line shall 52 begin no more than fifteen spaces from the left-hand margin. 53

(c) No court reporter, except an official court reporter producing a 54 transcript for a legal proceeding within this state, shall charge any 55 other party to the legal proceeding more for a final transcript than the 56 amount that is charged to the hiring party for the final transcript, 57 excluding ancillary attendance and other fees or additional services 58 requested and charged to the hiring party. Services that a party may 59 request of a court reporter at an increased fee include, but are not 60 limited to, expedited delivery of a transcript, daily copy of a transcript, 61 streaming text or video. If additional services are requested by any 62 party, these services shall be offered at the same or lower rate to all 63 parties to the legal proceeding, irrespective of which party hired the 64 court reporter. A court reporter, except an official court reporter, shall 65 charge the same rates for final transcripts and other services to all 66 parties to a legal proceeding irrespective of who hired the court 67 reporter. A court reporter, upon receiving a written request from a 68 party for an invoice for services rendered, shall provide such invoice to 69 the requesting party no later than thirty days after the date of receipt of 70 the request. 71

(d) Nothing in this section shall prevent a court reporter from 72 charging a nonhiring party a lower rate for a copy of a final transcript 73 or other service. Raised Bill No. 844

(e) Any violation of the provisions of this section by a court reporter 75 shall constitute an unfair trade practice under chapter 735a of the 76 general statutes. 77

(f) The provisions of this section shall not be construed to apply to 78 an official court reporter appointed by the judges of the Superior Court 79 pursuant to chapter 874 of the general statutes. This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections: Section 1 October 1, 2019 New section Statement of Purpose: To standardize legal transcript requirements and the fees charged by court reporters. [Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]