Image 01
  • Home
  • Services
    • Legal Videographer | Video Depositions
    • National Certified Court Reporters
    • Wisconsin Court Reporters
    • Deposition Reporting
    • Certified Court Reporters
    • Conference Rooms
    • Videography
    • Video Conferencing
    • Case Management
    • – Case Management Tools
    • Nationwide Coverage
  • About
    • Principals
    • Helpful Info
    • Our Team
  • Schedule
  • Blog
  • Contact
Toll Free 800.456.9531
Blog

Your Wisconsin Deposition Headquarters

Subscribe

For monthly updates on court reporting news, sign up for our free newsletter!

 Subscribe in a reader

  • Office Hours: M-F, 7:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
    Phone: 414-224-9533

    After Hours

    414.581.1597
    414.704.5993
  • Archives

    • June 2015
    • November 2014
    • October 2014
    • September 2014
    • April 2014
    • March 2014
    • February 2014
    • January 2014
    • December 2013
    • November 2013
    • October 2013
    • September 2013
    • August 2013
    • July 2013
    • June 2013
    • May 2013
    • April 2013
    • March 2013
    • February 2013
    • January 2013
    • December 2012
    • November 2012
    • October 2012
    • September 2012
    • August 2012
    • July 2012
    • June 2012
    • May 2012
    • April 2012
    • March 2012
    • February 2012
    • January 2012
    • December 2011

Brown & Jones Court Reporting Blog

« The benefits of becoming a court reporter
Prop 8 deliberations increase popularity of court transcripts »

Massachusetts judge gives filmmaker a lesson on court transcripts

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has ruled that a documentary filmmaker is not entitled to access the unofficial backup court report of a 2007 rape trial, the Boston Globe reports.

Steve Audette, a documentary film producer, requested an electronic recording of the trial, which was a backup to the official print transcript. The court ruled against Audette, stating that he and the rest of the public had free access to the official court record, which was prepared and transcribed by a certified court reporter who had used an electronic recording as a backup to the transcript. According to Justice Ralph Gants, access to one version of the transcript did not mean rights to access the other.

"Where an official record of the proceeding [the transcript] is available to the public, a presumption of public access to an unofficial record is more likely to generate public confusion than to aid public understanding," Gants wrote in a 19-page unanimous opinion, according to the Globe.

The trial in question is that of Keith Winfield. According to the news source, the court reporter present at the 2007 trial was a voice writer who chose to use the recording merely as a reference. As a result, the court said that there had not been any restriction of an official court document. However, it also stated that, legally, the filmmaker would gain nothing by showing what could be gained by acquiring the backup recording. In order to gain access to the recording, an individual would have to prove that the legal system had barr​ed justice from being served by restricting access, the Globe reported.

This story is yet another example that, even with advent of recording technologies, courts still rely on Milwaukee court reporters to maintain a trial's official transcript.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 3rd, 2013 at 9:56 am and is filed under All Posts, Court Reporting News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

Leave a Reply

 
  • Brown & Jones
    735 North Water Street
    Milwaukee, WI 53202
    Tel (414) 224-9533
    Toll-Free (800) 456-9531
    Fax (414) 224-9635
  • Home
  • Services
  • About
  • Schedule
  • Blog
  • Contact

  • © 2012 All Rights Reserved.