Making a Better Record: Tips from a Court Reporter to His Lawyer Child

[TIP] I just came across this piece in the August 1998 issue of the Washington State Bar News. Sure, it's an old article, but the tips are great and you probably haven't seen it (if you're a student or new to the profession) or you've forgotten it (if you dutifully read this issue of the Bar News when it hit your mailbox seven years ago).

William Macauley, a retired court reporter (whose work included depositions of H.R. Haldeman and Richard Nixon and work in the Ford Pinto and WPPSS cases) wrote Making a Better Record: Tips from a Court Reporter to His Lawyer Child. He began:

My dear child:

Congratulations on passing the Bar. You ask if I can pass along tips from my career as a court reporter that would help you in your chosen career as a trial lawyer. Boy, can I! Here's a buffet of tips you can choose from which I guarantee will help you make a better record in your practice and make you more record-conscious.

Lawyers spend years learning their craft and draft pleadings meticulously, yet when one speaks really well, we view him with wonder, gratitude and, yes, admiration. I feel safe in saying, with all due respect, that 90 percent of all trial lawyers leave room for improvement. Here are some omissions and commissions that apparently aren't dwelt upon in law school or CLE seminars, and that will help you produce a true, complete and impartial record.

Categories: transcript, record, court-reporters, tips