So with the COVID-19 pandemic being rampant, will there be successful legal scopists in 2024? You worry you won’t succeed. Worry does not help anything. Stop it!
How To Be Successful Legal Scopists
What Is a Court Reporter
A court reporter goes by several names. To begin with, look at Wikipedia’s definition:
“A court reporter or court stenographer,[1] formerly referred to as a stenotype operator, shorthand reporter, or law reporter,[2] is a person whose occupation is to capture the live testimony in proceedings using a stenographic machine and transforming same into an official certified transcript by nature of their training, certification, and usually licensure. This can include courtroom hearings and trials, depositions, sworn statements, and more.”
Are Legal Scopists the Same as Court Reporters
No, again according to Wikipedia, a scopist is the following:
“A scopist edits the transcripts of official proceedings, created by court reporters.[1] Court reporters attend official proceedings such as court hearings and transcribe the spoken word to written text, mostly using stenotype machines or voice mask equipment. Scopists receive the rough copies of these transcripts after the proceedings, check the transcript for missing words or mistakes, edit grammar and punctuation, ensure that proper names and technical or scientific terms are spelled correctly, and format the transcript properly before delivering the transcript back to the court reporter.”
Are Legal Scopists the Same as Transcript Proofreaders
No, again. The workflow is that the transcript goes from a court reporter to a scopist and then to the proofreader. It is true that a scopist proofreads but proofreaders do not turn around and scope. The proofreader is the final stop before the transcript is delivered to the lawyers.
A proofreader makes one last check for capitalization, spelling, word usage, transposed words, and stray formatting issues. The biggest task the proofreader encounters is to correct punctuation so that the spoken word is as clear as possible.
Legal Scopists Are Resilient
Legal scopists are already flexible, hardy individuals that know how to get things done. Court proceedings could be virtual, in person or even a combination of the two. Scopists easily handle whatever is thrown at them.
Legal Scopists Are Resourceful
The internet is full of scopist/court reporter websites. Scopists are adept at finding the best websites where they can network, be friendly, participate in forums and get referrals.
Legal Scopists Are Often Paired With Court Reporters
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Employment of court reporters and simultaneous captioners is projected to grow 9 percent from 2019 to 2029, much faster than the average for all occupations. However, because it is a small occupation, the fast growth will result in only about 1,400 new jobs over the decade. Demand for court reporters and simultaneous captioners will be influenced by federal regulations requiring an expanded use of captioning for television, the Internet, and other technologies. Employment growth may be affected, however, by budgetary constraints and the use of technology.”
Scopists Face the Future with Optimism
There is no questioning it. From the sounds of it, it is not likely that pandemic conditions will improve soon. But, there is always room for hope and optimism.
Just in the last few days, I read an article in Top Class Actions that stated:
“As the coronavirus continues to spread, consumers are seeking legal help in its wake.
Coronavirus lawsuits are filed over a variety of issues including price-gouging, business interruption insurance, impact on workers, impact on voters, and more.
In addition, consumers face financial injury as companies continue to deny refunds for concert tickets, theme park passes, airfare, and vacation plans that had to be canceled due to the pandemic.”
Scopists Are On Top of Their Game
While it is possible that a scopist may only work with one court stenographer, it’s also possible that a legal scopist can work with several. They need to be on top of their game with organization. In addition, all other obligations at home, at work if you work parttime, or elsewhere need to be handled. You can do it!
Scopists Never Stop Learning
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Every day is an adventure for scopists. New scopists often are eager to learn everything they can about the world of scoping. Many of them are so excited to learn that Internet Scoping School (ISS) has a free mini course that teaches the following, and this is just a sampling.
Day 1: What is scoping? What does a scopist do?
Day 2: How big is the demand for scopists?
Day 3: What skills does a scopist need? + Test your word skills!
That’s not to say that veteran scopists don’t keep up with their learning. If they have graduated from ISS, they get lifetime updates to new course information and lifetime support.
The School’s most recent blog post has plenty of positive testimonials taken from their Facebook page regarding the availability of work during the pandemic. They are quite emphatic when saying that there is and will be work in the scoping arena.
The Future Is Bright for Successful Legal Scopists
Case loads are going to get very, very busy. Scopists; get ready for a bright future. Legal Scoping Can Earn You Money From Home. You have many reasons for why you can be successful legal scopists in order to give you a mental boost. Did it work?
