Court order allows freelance court reporters in civil trials

The Iowa Supreme Court’s blessing allowing attorneys to hire freelance court reporters to make an accurate record of civil trials was made to deal with a critical shortage of court reporters, but some legal experts and freelancers don’t see it as a viable option.

Lawyers and freelancers who spoke with The Gazette said concerns over money may cancel out this option because plaintiffs ultimately would have to pay more to get their day in court, and freelancers would have to take a pay cut to accept the state’s rate during a civil trial that could last two or three weeks.

The court recognizes the urgency of the shortage, but it is offering a “tourniquet” inadequate to help a much bigger problem, said Alfredo Parrish, senior partner of Parrish Kruidenier Law Firm in Des Moines, said. He has heard about 28 more official court reporters will retire this year.

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“It’s somewhat disappointing that something more comprehensive wasn’t done to address the situation we are in,” Parrish said.

Tim Semelroth, lawyer with RSH Legal in Cedar Rapids, agreed, saying the court’s order does provide an option to avoid delays, but not a long-term solution for making civil jury trials more accessible — which is a constitutional right for all Iowans.

Civil cases aren’t a “priority” on the court schedule, is said, so if one is bumped it may not get back on the calendar for several months or a year. A few months ago, Semelroth said he had one of his trials bumped for the second time because there wasn’t an official court reporter available. The trial had been pending for two years.

The court acknowledges hiring freelancers for civil trials “is not a solution to the shortage — it’s just one more tool in the toolbox” to possibly prevent more delays, said Steve Davis, Iowa Judicial Branch communications director. A recent Supreme Court order was made to combine previous similar orders issued in 2010, when there also was a court reporter shortage.

Bob Gast, Iowa Judicial Branch state court administrator, told The Gazette last year that the crisis is the result of fewer people pursuing a court reporting career, retirements of existing reporters and students not graduating fast enough to combat the problem that has been brewing in the state for the last decade.

These positions are crucial to the judicial system because they are responsible for making an accurate, verbatim official record of trials and other court proceedings.

Court reporters said the issue was exacerbated when court reporters were laid off in 2009 amid court budget cuts and there were rumblings across the country that voice recognition technology would curtail the need for court reporters.

At the same time, AIB College of Business in Des Moines — now closed — phased out the only court reporter program in Iowa beginning in 2012. Des Moines Area Community College then started one in 2014 and for the last few years it went to online classes in an effort to reach more people. A program also started last year at the Black Hawk Community College- Quad Cities campus.

Longer than five days

Semelroth noted that 6th Judicial District Chief Judge Lars Anderson sent out a recent memo stating the court couldn’t provide a court reporter for a civil trial if it lasts longer than five days because of the shortage.

Davis said he wasn’t aware of any other chief judges taking this action.

The 6th District — Linn, Johnson, Benton, Jones, Tama and Iowa counties — has been hit the hardest, with 10 open positions out of 20. Next is Southeastern Iowa’s 8th District, which has nine open out of 20.

Southwestern Iowa’s 4th District is the only one that has all its 13 positions filled.

Sam Jones, a lawyer and senior vice president with Shuttleworth and Ingersoll, said civil cases for recovery of damages — lawsuits — aren’t a scheduling priority. Emergency matters such as mental health commitments, criminal cases and cases involving custody issues, protective orders and guardianship matters are among the priority cases that get scheduled first.

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Some of his law partners have had trials bumped because a court reporter wasn’t available, Jones said. An average delay for a trial has been nine to 12 months. Back in 2010, some delays were over a year.

Jones hasn’t hired a freelancer for a trial in the past but if the clients have the financial means, he encourages it to avoid a delay.

“The judiciary is in a tough spot because its entire budget is salary,” Jones noted. “It would help if court reporter salaries could be increased. They play an important role in the judicial system. I hope we can find a solution.”

Parrish said the higher cost of freelancers isn’t a solution for the people who don’t have “endless dollars” to spend on a lawsuit — which is why they are suing in the first place.

“We will only use that option if the value of the case justifies the additional cost,” said Dave O’Brien, a Cedar Rapids lawyer. “I do not believe it will have a significant impact on the court reporter shortage. Right now you have to schedule depositions at least a couple of months out in order to make sure you have a court reporter.”

Semelroth and other lawyers said the biggest hurdle may be finding freelancers who are willing to work for the state pay per day rate — $334 — and mileage.

‘Why would we take it’

Heidi Krafka, freelance court reporter and owner of Weston Reporting in Bettendorf, said she doesn’t know “why would we would take it when we are already swamped and they are telling us what we can make? Why would we do it. We’re self-employed and don’t have the benefits” — like health care and retirement — “the official court reporters get.”

When Krafka first got out of school, it was difficult to get an official court reporter’s position because there were no openings, so she started freelancing 30 years ago. Now, she sets her own hours, pay rate and has flexibility on the jobs she accepts.

Jane Carson, who has been a freelancer for over 50 years, agreed with Krafka that the state’s pay isn’t an incentive for a freelancer to give up “our bread and butter”-- reporting depositions and transcripts. Carson said if she takes a two-day deposition, sells an original and one copy of the transcript, it would bill out between $2,200 and $2,500.

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The pay per day isn’t guaranteed and civil trials don’t always go to trial, Carson noted. Many times, the litigants settle at the last minute so the freelancer, who turned down deposition work for the trial, would possibly have no income for one to three weeks.

Rachel Waterhouse, freelancer and owner of Westphal Reporting in Dubuque, said she would love to “sub” a few days a week, if that was an option to help. She knows other freelancers would be interested in doing civil trials and could be a good option for retired court reporters.

Waterhouse said she thinks the situation for the courts will turn around once students in the programs get out of school and start working.

In 1991, when she graduated, it was so competitive to get a job with the courts and there weren’t many openings, so she became self-employed.

Tammy Van Bogart, a retired official court reporter for the 6th District, said colleagues saw the problem coming because there were fewer students and fewer reporting programs, and more reporters reaching retirement age.

In 2017, she proposed a program to allow retired court reporters to work, similar to the senior judges’ program — they can work only so many days per year.

She pitched her idea to Todd Nuccio, former state court administrator for the Iowa Judicial Branch, but didn’t feel he seriously considered it, she said. Later, she was told independent contractors couldn’t use state computers, which they would need to access files.

Van Bogart said she would have been willing to do the temporary work if it would have been offered four years ago when she retired, but now, she hasn’t typed on a steno machine for years and it takes practice to get speed up to over 200 words a minute.

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Court’s action

Last year, the court did approve allowing retired court reporters to work on a temporary basis for up to 780 hours per fiscal year. Retirees aren’t eligible if they are doing freelance court reporting work, according to the court’s guidelines.

The 6th District has one retired court reporter that has taken some assignments, Judge Anderson said.

The court’s Office of Professional Regulation also is asking court reporters to weigh in on expanding the definition of “certified shorthand reporters” to include both steno machine and stenomask reporters to help the shortage problem.

In the memo sent June 30, Nicholas Critelli, the office’s executive director, wrote Iowa “is one of only a handful of states” that limit court reporters to making an official record by using a steno machine.

Stenomask reporters, or voice writers, provide verbal transcription during a court proceeding instead of typing it on a steno machine, according to National Verbatim Reporters Association. The mask is a hand-held microphone built into a soundproof enclosure that fits over the reporter’s mouth or mouth and nose.

Critelli asked the court reporters to provide their comments by Aug. 29.

Comments: (319) 398-8318; trish.mehaffey@thegazette.com