When you last appeared in court, did your client receive a verbatim record of the hearing? If it was a family law, probate, or unlimited civil case, they may not have.

California’s statewide court reporter shortage means that thousands of hearings are going unrecorded every day. Verbatim records are essential for safeguarding your client’s rights: they preserve your client’s ability to appeal incorrect trial court orders, aid in renewing or modifying court orders, and help ensure the accuracy and integrity of trial court proceedings.

Courts are calling the court reporter shortage a “constitutional crisis,” one that threatens the due process rights of countless low-income litigants. In response, some courts have issued general orders that allow for electronic recording to create the verbatim record when court reporters are unavailable.

As you might have guessed, this is a thorny, complex issue—so of course there are many ethical considerations for lawyers to navigate! For example, when should you make a request for a verbatim record, and how do you do it? Do you proceed without a verbatim record when a court reporter is unavailable, or request electronic recording? What if the court offers you a continuance to secure a court reporter, but your client cannot afford a private one, and the court cannot guarantee a free one will be available on the new hearing date? And what if the judge is resistant to your request for a verbatim record?

This training will cover how your ethical duties of diligence, competence, and communication are implicated when your client’s right to a verbatim record is at risk.