Legal videographers are typically the first professional that shows up at a deposition and has the job of configuring the room for the court reporter, witness, and attorneys.  The legal videographer has to take into consideration space, windows, and the table shape.

I have traveled the country to report depositions, and in some regions it is typical for the videographer to shoot down the table and have the court reporter sitting to the left or right side of the witness with the questioning attorney next to the court reporter.  This is my very least favorite configuration, and when I walk in the room and see the camera on the other end of the table, I am not happy.   If the videographer is hired by our company, we insist the shot be across the table, “over the shoulder” of the questioning attorney with the court reporter at the end of the table between the witness and questioning attorney.

There are two reasons why I prefer the shot across the table.  One, the witness is looking into the camera, not looking at the attorney with the camera focused on the side of the witness’ face.  Two, as the court reporter, I can watch the mouths of the witness and attorneys as they speak and physically face both speakers without twisting my body.  Sitting in a twisted position after a couple of hours is incredibly hard on the neck and lower back.

Because the steno machine needs to be in front of the court reporter, the reporter has to be three or four feet away from the table, and if the reporter sits next to the questioning attorney, the reporter is either behind the questioning attorney (so the court reporter has to lean forward trying to see the attorney’s mouth and hear) or sitting alongside and having to twist to see/hear the attorney. (Typically court reporters choose to face the witness rather than the attorney.)

I believe the CLVS training by NCRA teaches the down-the-table method to videographers.  I wish they would reconsider their teaching.  Our clients have been educated and prefer the over-the-shoulder method.  The only time we would shoot down the table is when there is no choice because of the room and/or table, which is about .0005% of the time.

The videographers around the country that I have had the pleasure to work with are always very considerate of the court reporter, and I salute them.   Whether shooting across the table or down the table, I look at the legal videographer as an ally and respected professional in the world of depositions.

@rosaliekramm  Twitter

Once a realtime court reporter goes wireless and sends their realtime feed to an attorney’s computer, it is hard to go back to wires.  Carrying the little bag around full of tangled wires with the little box is not efficient.  AND YET twice in the past three months my firm has had the situation in which the client made it clear using a wireless connection to be unacceptable and demanded wires.

Wires were demanded in one situation because the subject matter of the job was “top secret” and the client was worried that someone could pick up a wireless feed in another room…  I know court reporters reading this will be rolling their eyes, but as the saying goes, “The client is always right.”

Another law firm we work with won’t allow wireless realtime for their attorneys because once, four years ago, a court reporter’s feed stopped, and testimony was dropped on the attorney’s screen.  The firm does not allow wireless realtime and won’t allow the necessary drivers to be loaded onto the computers.

Chris Jordan is always a part of every buying decision my court reporting firm makes when it comes to computers and technology.  When I need to buy a new laptop as a court reporter, Chris insists I purchase the laptop from my CAT vendor so it is built for the job.  I spend more money than a reporter buying a laptop from a Fry’s or BestBuy, but I have a serial port, a PCMCIA card slot, as well as USB ports.  Many would argue PCM cards and serial ports are outdated technology, and they would be right, but in our world, we need serial ports.

I love using Stenocast.  If I can get a driver loaded on an attorney’s computer, it is so much easier to have a successful hook-in, not having to deal with USB-to-serial dongles and their drivers.  BUT if an attorney needs to use wires, I have to be ready.  My advice:  Don’t throw away or lose your realtime wires/box.  One day you might get the GREAT JOB because you can write as a retro-realtime court reporter.

@rosaliekramm  Twitter

As a follow-up to my last post regarding Steve Jobs and his message to the Stanford graduating class of 2005 (and court reporters), I did some research on job happiness and came across an article in the Harvard Business Review, “The Happiness Dividend” by Harvard Teaching Fellow Shawn Achor, founder of Good Think, Inc.

Achor begins his article with statistics from the Conference Board Survey and CNNMoney that 84% of the working population is unhappy with their jobs and that employees are the unhappiest they have been in the past 22 years since the Board started tracking job happiness.  He goes on to state, “the single greatest advantage in the modern economy is a happy and engaged workforce.  A decade of research proves that happiness raises every business and educational outcome:  raising sales by 37%, productivity by 31%, and accuracy on tasks (important for court reporters) by 19%, as well as a myriad of health and quality of life improvements.”

Given Achor’s research, the question is not whether happiness should matter to firms, but what can a firm do to raise the level of happiness of their staff and court reporters/videographers?

“The first thing for everyone to do is recognize that happiness is an advantage at work.”  As Achor states, “This will encourage you to seek happiness in the present instead of waiting for a future success.”  And he goes on, “You can literally train your brain for higher levels of happiness at work by creating habits to increase job satisfaction.”  Here are five suggestions on how to change your happiness factor:

1. Write down three new things you are grateful for each day
2. Write two minutes a day describing one positive experience you had over the past 24 hours
3. Exercise for at least ten minutes a day
4. Meditate for two minutes, focusing on your breath in and out (breathe from stomach)
5. Write one quick email first thing in the morning thanking or praising a member on your team

From reading Achor’s article, I have come to the conclusion that happiness can become a habit, and one of the keys to success is becoming conscious of the good things in your life and appreciating others around you.  I don’t believe anyone wants to be miserable at work or on the job.  Sometimes things come up that are beyond your control (tough witness that speaks with a heavy accent about new technology) or court reporters turn in their work with wrong dates or email addresses, and the production team has to send it back and/or re-print a job.  But I bet during those days when things seem to be extra difficult or jobs come in with lots of little mistakes, there is probably a positive thing that happened as well, and that is what needs to be focused on.  (Another suggestion is to play happy music when it is an extra tough day.)

As Achor writes, “investing in happiness pays great.”  I wish for all court reporters, legal videographers, and court reporting staff a happy 2012 and thus much prosperity.

@rosaliekramm  Twitter