Court Reporting Methods Comparison: Digital vs Steno

Court reporting is evolving from the older stenographic technology to new digital reporting solutions

The legal profession has long relied on accurate transcripts to document court proceedings, depositions, and hearings, preserving the integrity of the legal process with the ability to review the written record. The last wave of technological advancement in court reporting was over 40 years ago with the development of 10-key steno typing keyboards connected to a computer running CAT transcription software. As technology has advanced and workforce challenges have emerged, legal professionals increasingly find themselves having to weigh the merits of using newer digital court reporting solutions because of the dwindling supply of experienced traditional court reporters.

Strengths of Traditional Stenographic Recording

Traditional court reporting relies on highly skilled stenographers who use specialized shorthand typing machines to capture spoken words in real-time. Stenographic court reporting remains a cornerstone of legal and administrative proceedings. Steno reporting benefits from being the established legal method for creating accurate, certified transcripts, and has been a long-standing and accepted practice in courts.

Steno reporters undergo professional extensive training and must achieve exceptional typing speeds while maintaining accuracy under pressure. It can take years of training and practice to master the skills needed to understand accents, complex terminology, and keep up with people who are often talking at a fast pace. Experienced stenographers consistently achieve high accuracy rates, typically between 95% and 98%, ensuring the integrity of the record. This includes marking exhibits and accurately tracking speaker changes in real time. This high level of professional training is essential, as experienced human judgment is critical for understanding clearly what people are saying and following the interactions between multiple people speaking throughout the proceeding.

Steno reporters can provide a spoken, verbatim readback upon request, along with submitting a certified written transcript days or weeks later. This allows for immediate review of spoken testimony on a computer screen. Judges and attorneys have come to rely on this crucial service as a quick reference for decision-making in high pressure cases. Until this year, real-time transcription was only available using stenographic methods of capturing the record.

Digital Court Reporting is Becoming the New Standard

Over 20 years ago, digital court reporting starting becoming popular in some settings. Trained digital court reporters starting to create transcripts using state-of-the-art audio recording equipment. They were able to capture the audio of each participant speaking using specialized digital court reporting software, identifying speakers, objections, and exhibits during legal proceedings. This method combines digital technology with human oversight makes it possible to create accurate transcripts without the difficult and expensive training process.

Since it's introduction, digital court reporting has proven to offer many advantages. Digital reporters have the ability to produce transcripts that match or even exceed the accuracy of traditional court reporters. A key feature is the digital audio recording.The final transcript is not relying on what the reporter was able to hear and type on their steno machines while in the room. Every person has their words captured on a separate digital recording track, allowing for a complete verification of what was said during the transcription process. Even when people speak over each other or do not speak clearly or loudly, the digital reporter can listen to each audio track to transcribe the words accurately.

Digital court reporting is also highly scalable, helping to address workforce shortages in many jurisdictions. Unlike steno reporting that takes years to master, digital court reporting can be learned in matter of months, expanding the pool of court reporters and providing opportunities for new reporters to enter the profession. Moreover, developments in AI technology had made the production of transcripts faster by automating the conversion of audio to text, and assisting in the formatting of the transcript to reduce the labor needed to create the final certified transcript.

With the release of new real-time transcription technology this year, digital court reporters can also provide a live transcription feed to participants. The newly announced SoniClear RealTime 10 software is an example of that technological advance.Using the existing recording equipment, the real-time text is displayed immediately on the screen, allowing for the same review of testimony as offered by steno reporters who offer live transcription features of their CAT machines.

Industry Challenges

There is a shortage of stenographers across the US. For example, California has seen a 25.6% decline in licensed court reporters between 2009 to 2010 and 2022 to 2023. This growing shortage of stenographers is due to increased retirement rates and dramatic reductions in people entering the field. This has led to increased case delays, jeopardizing access to justice across the country.

Digital court reporting provides a practical solution to these workforce challenges while maintaining professional standards through rigorous certification programs.

AI is transforming court reporting by enabling faster, more accurate transcription, with AI tools providing real-time transcription and pattern analysis capabilities. These advances benefit both traditional and digital reporting methods, enhancing rather than replacing human expertise.

Both stenographic and digital court reporting communities continue to raise professional standards through:

• Enhanced certification requirements
• Continuing education mandates
• Technology integration training
• Cross-method collaboration and knowledge sharing

This year is a turning point where digital court reporters now offer the same services as a traditional steno reporters, while stepping in to handle more cases when traditional reporters are unavailable.

Integrated Steno and Digital Technologies

The future of court reporting increasingly points toward collaboration rather than competition between traditional and digital methods. By amplifying human expertise, AI is changing the way reporters work, not replacing them.

Technology-Enhanced Stenographic Reporting - Modern stenographic reporting benefits from technological advances including:

• Computer-aided transcription (CAT) software for faster transcript production
• Real-time streaming capabilities for remote attorney access
• Integration with case management systems
• Backup recording systems for additional security

Professional Digital Reporting - Many successful digital court reporting operations combine technology with professional expertise:

• Certified digital reporters manage equipment and proceedings
• Professional transcriptionists ensure accuracy and formatting
• Quality assurance protocols maintain legal standards
• Software solutions like Court Recorder 10 provide comprehensive digital court reporting platforms

Choosing the Best Court Reporting Method

The choice between traditional stenographic and digital court reporting depends on several factors:

Case Complexity and Requirements

• High-stakes litigation - May benefit from real-time capabilities and familiarity with traditional methods
• Routine proceedings - Digital reporting often provides cost-effective solutions
• Multi-party cases - Consider speaker identification capabilities of each method
• Technical evidence - Evaluate ability to handle specialized terminology

Geographic and Practical Considerations

• Rural jurisdictions - Digital reporting may offer higher availability
• Remote proceedings - Both methods can accommodate virtual attendance
• Budget constraints - Digital reporting typically offers lower daily rates
• Timeline requirements - Speed of delivery varies with each reporting service, regardless of method of reportin

Both methods, when properly executed by certified professionals, can achieve the accuracy and reliability required for legal proceedings. Certification verifies state-to-state. Digital court reporters are trained to capture high-quality, and can create admissible records of legal proceedings in many states. On the other hand, stenographic reporting maintains the reporting method permitted in almost all legal jurisdictions.

The Bottom Line

The choice between digital and traditional court reporting doesn't need to be an either-or decision. Digital can serve as a solution for the areas that do not have access to court reporters. When policy mandates certain case types must have court reporters, it can create situations where lower-priority cases (like family law and civil matters) proceed without reporters, limiting access to records and appeals. In California, more than 1.7 million hearings in unlimited civil, family law, and probate proceedings have been held without a verbatim record since January 1, 2023.

Legal professionals benefit most when they understand the capabilities and appropriate applications of both methods. As technology continues to evolve, the most successful court reporting solutions will likely combine the best aspects of human professionals with technological innovation, ensuring that our legal system maintains accurate, accessible, and reliable records of proceedings.

The future of court reporting lies not in replacement, but in the thoughtful integration of traditional skills with modern technology—amplifying human expertise to better serve the administration of justice.

Learn more about how RealTime 10, Court Reporter 10, and Transcriber 10 can bring the power of AI to your legal proceedings. Call 626-584-9706, or use our online Contact Form.