July 6 2015

Court Reporting Requirements In Illinois

Illinois requires that their court reporters pass a state proctored Certified Shorthand Reporter examination. The Illinois Certified Shorthand Reporters Act dictates the rules and regulations of the examination, as well as other reporter requirements.

Illinois’s Certified Shorthand Reporter exam has the following components: (1) Written Knowledge: Must be passed with 75%. (2) Dictation Examination: 200 wpm for 5 minutes at 95% accuracy and two-voice testimony at 225 wpm for 5 minutes at 95% accuracy.

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March 14 2015

Court Reporting Requirements In Connecticut

According to CourtReporterEdu.org, the following are requirements for becoming a court reporter in Connecticut: (1) Complete a court reporting degree/certificate program.

(2) Take the Connecticut exam for licensure: This exam is given by the Connecticut Court Reporter’s Association. There is a fee to take the test, which consists of an 1-hour 100-question written knowledge test, and a skills examination. The CCRA’s skills exam is comprised of 2 180 lits, 2 200 jury charges, and 2 225 2-voice Q&As. It should be noted that the RPR and any comparable state exam can reportedly be substituted for the CCRA’s test requirement.

(3) Complete an application for Connecticut licensure. The application is accompanied by an almost $300 fee.

(4) For license renewal and maintenance, there must be earned continuing education credits as well as an additional fee.

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November 3 2014

Court Reporting Requirements in Hawaii

Being a court reporter in Hawaii has the following requirements:
1) Being a good and moral individual.
2) Having a high school diploma or an equivalent.
3) Passing the NCRA’s Registered Professional Reporter (RPR) Exam.
4) Freelance reporters must be a resident of Hawaii and be a notary of Hawaii.
5) Reporters in Hawaii also apply for membership with the Hawaii Board of Certified Shorthand Reporters and pass a written knowledge test on Hawaii that includes: Hawaiian language vocabulary, geographic facts about the island,
and state history and trivia.

[SOURCE: Court Reporter EDU]

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August 23 2013

Court Reporting Requirements in South Carolina

The Court Reporter Manual for the State of South Carolina issued by the South Carolina Court Administration states the following as requirements for becoming a court reporting official in the state:
“A. Education: Applicants must possess a high school diploma or its equivalent.
B. Certification: Applicants must meet a minimum of one of the following qualifications: 1) an associate degree or a certificate in court reporting from an accredited or approved program/institution, or; 2) a Registered Professional Reporter (RPR) certificate or a Certified Verbatim Reporter (CVR) certificate.”

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November 9 2012

Court Reporting Requirements in Texas

According to the Court Reporters Certification Board for Texas, the requirements for becoming a court reporter are as follows:

1) Pass the CSR Examination.
2) Have a High School Diploma or GED equivalent.
3) Submit to fingerprinting so a criminal history investigation can be done.

The fingerprinting requirement was enacted on April 26, 2011.

CLICK HERE for details on what the CSR test entails.

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September 14 2012

Court Reporting Requirements in Tennessee

Next year, the NCRA conference will be held in Tennessee. Therefore, I decided to check out the requirements for working reporters in Tennessee. In 2009, the Tennessee Court Reporter Act was enacted. This Act requires that all court reporters in Tennessee be licensed.

To be licensed as a court reporter in Tennessee, a reporter must:
(1) Submit a Tennessee Board of Court Reporting License Application; AND
(2) Submit proof of passage of the:
(a) National Court Reporters Association(NCRA) Registered Professional Reporter Examination(RPR); OR
(b) National Verbatim Reporters Association Certified Verbatim Reporter Examination; OR
(c) American Association of Electronic Reporters and Transcribers Certified Electronic Court Reporter Examination; AND
(3) Pay applicable fees.

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August 9 2012

Court Reporting Requirements in Pennsylvania

In honor of the NCRA conference being held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania this week, I decided to research the requirements of becoming a court reporter in the State of Pennsylvania.

The uniform rules governing court reporting and transcripts for Pennsylvania is found in Chapter 50, Article V, Section 10 of the Constitution of Pennsylvania. Rule 5000.3 of this section of the code lists the qualifications of reporters, as follows:

“(a) After the effective date of these rules, no person shall be hired by a court as a shorthand reporter unless he or she is capable of recording proceedings at a 95% accuracy level at the following speeds:

(1) Literary or jury charge at 180 w.p.m.

(2) Medical testimony (two voices) 200 w.p.m.

(3) Ordinary testimony (up to four voices) 225 w.p.m.

(b) Each applicant must have a minimum of two years practical experience in taking and transcribing legal material and shall be required to pass a test establishing at least the foregoing qualifications, conducted by the court seeking to employ the reporter, prior to employment. A shorthand reporter may be provisionally employed for a period of not more than six months or until the next convenient certification exam. A reporter who holds a NSRA Certificate of Proficiency or Certificate of Merit shall be deemed prima facie qualified and need not be examined.

(c) A person may be employed by a court to record testimony by electronic means, such as multi-track audio recording devices, provided that the equipment incorporates the features required by the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts for such use, and has been approved by the president judge or his designee. Prior to the employment or assignment of any person to operate and monitor such equipment, the district court administrator shall require proof that the reporter:

(1) is fully familiar with the controls of the equipment;

(2) has adequate hearing acuity to assure a high quality recording;

(3) will insist on clarity of the recording; and

(4) can quickly diagnose and correct routine malfunctions.”

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July 10 2012

CSR Requirements


The CSR is the Certified Shorthand Reporter test. This test is a voluntary licensing examination. In New York, the CSR is administered by the New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions, Division of Professional Licensing Services.

The exam consists of the following components:

1) A written test of 40 questions of grammar, vocabulary, and punctuation. A passing score is 75%.

2) A written test of 20 questions about legal terminology, legal procedure, court structure, and rules of evidence.

3) Seven minutes of 4-voice dictation at 200 words per minute that must be transcribed.

4) A four minute jury charge at 175 words per minute, which must be read back from your notes within 12 minutes.. This must be dome with 95%.

5) A five minute, 2-voice medical dictation at 175 words per minute. This dictation must be transcribed with 95%.

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June 29 2012

New York’s Note Retention Requirements


According to the New York State Court Reporters Association, a freelance reporter should retain their notes for a time period set forth by a court order or statute, or for no less than 5 years.

For officials, the New York State Court Reporters Association’s website, has the following time periods for note retention listed for the following New York courts:
Family Court- 5 years.
Surrogate’s Court- 5 years.
City, Town and Village Courts (civil)- 2 years.
City, Town and Village Courts (criminal)- 10 years.
New York City only (vehicle/traffic/parking cases)- 2 years.
Supreme/County (civil)- 5 years.
Supreme/County (criminal)- 50 years.
Matrimonial stipulations of settlement involving real estate- 50 years.
Also, officials must reportedly apply for destruction approval before disposing of notes.

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