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The hard cases.

Interpreters, crosstalk, objections, off the record, recordings, and fillers: whose rule applies.

Practice only6 drills in this lesson.Format and hard cases

Read first.

Format is local. Federal courts follow the Judicial Conference, and the Guide says “No court, judge, supervisor, court reporter, or transcriber may authorize a deviation from the requirements provided by the Judicial Conference.” California sets minimum standards for its licensees in 16 CCR § 2473; Texas has its Uniform Format Manual; Michigan has its manual for court reporters and recorders.

Sources: Guide to Judiciary Policy, Vol. 6, § 520(a); 16 CCR § 2473; Texas Uniform Format Manual; Michigan SCAO manual for reporters and recorders; The guide: Know your jurisdiction.

Difficult proceedings are where editors are most tempted to improve the record. The defaults mostly say the opposite: mark the situation, keep what was said, and send uncertainty back to the reporter. NCRA’s advisory opinions bind members only as far as they are consistent with state and local law, so local law comes first.

Sources: NCRA Advisory Opinion 4; The guide: The hard cases at a glance.

Remote jobs add to the record. NCRA prefers “videoconference” or “remote” to “virtual,” and chat is not in the record “unless one of the parties reads it into the record.” California’s Board allows a “technical difficulty” parenthetical.

Sources: NCRA COPE Guidelines for Professional Practice; Court Reporters Board of California, Pointer No. 11.

Rough drafts are a different product. NCRA’s guidelines say “An uncertified transcript may not be filed with the court,” and each page should say “uncertified draft transcript only.” Federal realtime carries “Realtime Unedited Transcript Only.”

Sources: NCRA COPE Guidelines for Professional Practice; Guide to Judiciary Policy, Vol. 6, § 320.50.30.

Read more in the guide: The hard cases at a glance; Know your jurisdiction.

Drills.

Format and hard cases: choose the line or the action; the feedback names whose rule applies.

The drills answer back with JavaScript on. Without it, every sample is here, and each drill’s answers and reasons are in its key.

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Drill 1: An answer in English

Format and hard cases, Federal

A federal deposition. The witness testifies through an interpreter, then answers one question directly in English. Which line marks that?

Answers, with the reasons

  1. A. Yes.

    Left unmarked, a federal reader takes the answer as interpreted: answers are assumed interpreted “unless a parenthetical ‘(in English)’ is inserted.”

    Source: Guide to Judiciary Policy, Vol. 6, § 520.40.10(g).

  2. A. (in English) Yes. (the answer)

    The federal Guide: “When interpreters are used, it will be assumed that answers are made in a foreign language and interpreted unless a parenthetical ‘(in English)’ is inserted.” Texas uses the same presumption. If the notes don’t mark the switch, flag it for the reporter rather than insert it yourself.

    Sources: Guide to Judiciary Policy, Vol. 6, § 520.40.10(g); Texas Uniform Format Manual, § 3.12; The guide: The hard cases at a glance.

  3. A. (Through the interpreter) Yes.

    Every answer is already presumed interpreted, so this marks nothing and hides the switch. The parenthetical the Guide names is “(in English).”

    Source: Guide to Judiciary Policy, Vol. 6, § 520.40.10(g).

Drill 2: Cut off mid-answer

Format and hard cases, Texas

A Texas deposition. Mr. Bravo cuts the witness off mid-answer to object. Which lines follow the Texas manual?

Answers, with the reasons

  1. A. I went back to the -- / MR. BRAVO: Objection. Form. (the answer)

    Texas: “Interruptions of speech must be denoted by the use of dashes ( -- ) at the point of interruption.” Elsewhere, mark interruptions the way the governing manual does, and keep every captured word.

    Sources: Texas Uniform Format Manual, § 2.9; E.D. Wash. attorney newsletter, August 2026; The guide: The hard cases at a glance.

  2. A. I went back to the... / MR. BRAVO: Objection. Form.

    Texas marks an interruption with dashes at the point it happens, not an ellipsis.

    Source: Texas Uniform Format Manual, § 2.9.

  3. A. I went back to the dock. / MR. BRAVO: Objection. Form.

    The witness never said “dock.” Finishing the sentence puts words in the record that nobody spoke.

    Source: The guide: The one rule: fix the machine, never the witness.

  4. MR. BRAVO: Objection. Form.

    Dropping the partial answer loses captured words. “Overlapping voices are one of the greatest threats to an accurate record”; keep every word you have.

    Source: E.D. Wash. attorney newsletter, August 2026.

Drill 3: Whose objection?

Format and hard cases

The rough reads “THE COURT: Objection. Form.” at a deposition with no judge in the room. The notes and the audio show Mr. Bravo made the objection. Which line is right?

Answers, with the reasons

  1. THE COURT: Objection. Form.

    No judge was there, and the notes and the audio name Mr. Bravo. Leaving it misattributes the objection.

    Source: The guide: The one rule: fix the machine, never the witness.

  2. MR. BRAVO: Objection. Form. (the answer)

    A speaker ID error the notes and the audio confirm is yours to correct. Misattribution has drawn a court’s notice: in two 2026 memorandum decisions, which are not binding precedent, the Indiana Court of Appeals catalogued objections attributed to the trial court and to the Bailiff.

    Sources: Orr v. State (Ind. Ct. App. 2026), memorandum decision; Williams v. State (Ind. Ct. App. 2026), memorandum decision; The guide: Pass 4: sweep mechanically.

  3. MS. ALPHA: Objection. Form.

    Ms. Alpha was asking the questions; the notes and the audio give the objection to Mr. Bravo.

    Source: The guide: Pass 4: sweep mechanically.

  4. Take the line out

    The objection was spoken and heard. It stays in the record; only its label was wrong.

    Source: The guide: The one rule: fix the machine, never the witness.

Drill 4: Heard on the video, not by the reporter

Format and hard cases

During a recess, off the record, the video camera picked up Mr. Bravo talking to the witness. The reporter did not hear it. The video’s audio is clear. What do you do?

Answers, with the reasons

  1. Transcribe it from the video, under a parenthetical

    NCRA Advisory Opinion 47: “A reporter should not include conversations unless they were actually heard and reported by the reporter.”

    Source: NCRA Advisory Opinion 47.

  2. Leave it out, and query the reporter (the answer)

    Speech the reporter did not hear stays out. Under Advisory Opinion 47, with all parties’ written agreement it may go in, marked as an excerpt from the video; that is the reporter’s decision, not the editor’s. NCRA’s opinions yield to state and local law.

    Sources: NCRA Advisory Opinion 47; NCRA Advisory Opinion 4; The guide: The hard cases at a glance.

  3. Add it yourself, marked as a video excerpt

    The opinion allows that only with all parties’ agreement, in writing, “provided the transcript clearly shows that the conversation is an excerpt from a video.” Route it to the reporter.

    Source: NCRA Advisory Opinion 47.

Drill 5: A gap in a recording

Format and hard cases, California

California. You are transcribing an electronic recording of a hearing, not a reporter’s notes. One word is lost under a cough. Which line is right?

Answers, with the reasons

  1. A. I signed it on the (unintelligible). (the answer)

    For recordings, the statute requires it: “Transcripts derived from electronic recordings shall include a designation of ‘inaudible’ or ‘unintelligible’ for those portions of the recording that contain no audible sound or are not discernible.” A live reporter’s transcript differs: the Board advises never using “(inaudible)” and interrupting instead, as guidance, not regulation.

    Sources: Cal. Gov. Code § 69957, (a); Court Reporters Board of California, Pointer No. 1.

  2. A. I signed it on the fifth.

    A likely word is a guess. Never fill a gap with one.

    Source: The guide: The hard cases at a glance.

  3. A. I signed it on the

    Leaving the gap unmarked hides it. For transcripts of recordings, California requires the designation.

    Source: Cal. Gov. Code § 69957, (a).

Drill 6: A sound that means yes

Format and hard cases, Texas

A Texas deposition. Asked whether she signed the invoice, the witness answers with a sound meaning yes. Which line follows the Texas manual?

Answers, with the reasons

  1. A. Uh-huh. (the answer)

    Texas fixes the spelling: “‘Uh-huh’ is used when the speaker is answering affirmatively. ‘Huh-uh’ is used when the speaker is answering negatively.” Federal transcripts normally leave out “uhms and ahs,” but keep them “whenever their exclusion could change a statement’s meaning”; here the sound is the answer.

    Sources: Texas Uniform Format Manual, § 3.9; Guide to Judiciary Policy, Vol. 6, § 520.40.10(b)(2).

  2. A. Yes.

    The witness didn’t say “yes.” Turning the sound into a word edits the testimony.

    Source: The guide: The one rule: fix the machine, never the witness.

  3. A. Huh-uh.

    In Texas, “Huh-uh” is the negative. This answer meant yes.

    Source: Texas Uniform Format Manual, § 3.9.

  4. Leave it out as a filler

    Even federal practice, which normally drops fillers, keeps them when leaving them out would change the meaning. Here the sound is the whole answer.

    Source: Guide to Judiciary Policy, Vol. 6, § 520.40.10(b)(2).

Recap.

  • Know which rule governs the job before you edit. Our order of authority: a statute, court rule, or court policy; then the official manual; then the reporter’s preferences; then a general style guide.
  • In federal and Texas practice, answers through an interpreter are presumed interpreted; an English answer is marked “(in English),” and an unmarked switch is flagged.
  • Mark interruptions as the governing manual does (dashes in Texas) and keep every captured word.
  • Never insert what the reporter did not hear, and never fill a gap with a likely word.

Free practice, not a credential. No certificate or credential: this course awards none, and we found no recognized credential for steno scopists.