This Code of Professional Ethics is incorporated by
reference in the Bylaws as Article XI. It includes the Guidelines for
Professional Practice, Sections I, II, III, and IV. Section I covers the
guidelines for the reporter making the official record; Section II covers the
guidelines for the realtime reporter in legal and non-legal proceedings;
Section III covers the guidelines for the realtime educational reporter; and
Section IV covers guidelines on providing uncertified rough draft transcripts.
In addition, the Code now includes Complaint Procedures.
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CODE OF PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
A Member Shall:
1. Be fair and impartial toward each participant in all
aspects of reported proceedings and always offer to provide comparable services
to all parties in a proceeding.
2. Be alert to situations that are conflicts of interest
or that may give the appearance of a conflict of interest. If a conflict or a
potential conflict arises, the Member shall disclose that conflict or potential
conflict.
3. Guard against not only impropriety, but the appearance
of impropriety.
4. Preserve the confidentiality and ensure the security
of information, oral or written, entrusted to the Member by any of the parties
in a proceeding.
5. Be truthful and accurate when making public statements
or when advertising the Member’s qualifications or the services provided.
6. Refrain, as an official reporter, from freelance reporting
activities that interfere with official duties and obligations.
7. Determine fees independently, except when established
by statute or court order, entering into no unlawful agreements with other
reporters on the fees to any user.
8. Refrain from giving, directly or indirectly, any gift,
incentive, reward or anything of value to attorneys, clients, witnesses,
insurance companies or any other persons or entities associated with the
litigation, or to the representatives or agents of any of the foregoing, except
for items that do not exceed $100 in the aggregate per recipient each year.
9. Maintain the integrity of the reporting profession.
10. Abide by the ILCRA Bylaws.
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GUIDELINES FOR PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
Section I
Court Reporter
Common sense and professional courtesy should guide the
Member in applying the following Guidelines.
In making the official record, a Member should:
A. Accept only those assignments when the Member’s level
of competence will result in the preparation of an accurate transcript. The
Member should remove himself from an assignment when the Member believes the
Member’s abilities are inadequate, recommending or assigning another reporter
only if such reporter has the competence required for such assignment.
B. Prepare the record in accordance with the
transcript-preparation guidelines established by statute or court order, by
local custom and usage, or when not so established in accordance with the
NCRA’s recommended Transcript format guidelines.
C. Notify whenever possible, the parties engaging the
Member if a substitute reporter, equally qualified, will be assigned to report
the proceedings.
D. Preserve the shorthand notes in accordance with
statute or court order, for a period of no less than five (5) years through
storage of the original paper notes or an electronic copy of either the
shorthand notes or the English transcript of the notes on computer disks,
cassettes, backup tape systems, or optical or laser disk systems.
E. Meet promised delivery dates whenever possible, make timely
delivery of transcripts when no date is specified, and provide immediate
notification of delays.
F. Strive to become and remain proficient in the Member’s
professional skills.
G. Keep abreast of current literature, technological
advances and developments, and participate in continuing-education programs.
H. Assist in improving the reporting profession by
participating in national, state, and local association activities that advance
the quality and standards of the reporting profession.
I. Cooperate with the bench and bar for the improvement
of the administration of justice.
J. Cooperate with qualified legal assistance
organizations providing free legal services to the indigent, as part of the
shorthand reporting profession’s commitment to the principle that reporting
services should be available to all. Such participation should be in accordance
with the basic tenets of the profession: impartiality, competence, and
integrity.
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Section II
Realtime Reporter as Assistive Technology in Legal and
Non-Legal Proceeding
A realtime reporter in this setting is a court reporter
using realtime skills an equipment to provide on-screen translation.
Understanding of the realtime reporter’s role is necessary among all parties to
the proceeding.
Common sense and professional courtesy should guide the
Member in applying the following Guidelines. A Member acting as a realtime
reporter with assistive technology should:
A. In legal proceedings, establish before beginning
realtime reporting a clear understanding of who has hired the reporter, what is
to be reported, and whether the realtime is to be used as assistive technology
or if a verbatim record is required in addition to the assistance being
provided.
B. In legal proceedings, establish before beginning
realtime reporting a clear understanding with all parties as to who owns the
residual computer note file and who, if anyone, has access to sell and/or
distribute the same and to whom, if anyone. Each situation will be unique.
C. Keep all assignment-related information strictly
confidential.
D. If realtime is used as assistive technology and a
verbatim record is not required, render as near a verbatim translation as
possible, always conveying the content and spirit of the speaker, using
substitute language which is computer-translatable when necessary to be
understood by the person being served. Use parentheticals to describe sounds,
laughter, anything that detracts attention from the proceedings to explain to
the nonhearing participant what is going on.
E. Not counsel, advise, or interject personal opinions.
F. Accept assignments using discretion with regard to
skill, setting, and the consumers involved, and shall accurately represent
their qualifications for realtime reporting.
G. Know the software and hardware system used and be able
to do simple troubleshooting.
H. Strive to further their knowledge and skill through
participation in workshops, professional meetings, interaction with
professional colleagues and reading of current literature in the field, and to
achieve realtime certification on a state or national level.
I. Save hard copy or disk of actual translation as it was
seen on screen before editing the file in any way. Job defines can be added as
the day goes on so long as they don’t alter what was seen on screen earlier. In
legal proceedings, the actual record as seen by the deaf party or juror should
be saved.
J. Be aware that special questions are raised when
realtime reporting for a deaf juror, and some understanding needs to be reached
by all parties before translation begins.
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Section III
Realtime Educational Reporter
The Realtime Education Reporter will be assigned to one
or more students for a particular class or classes for the term of each class.
This reporter will accompany the student(s) to each class. Through the use of
realtime translation, the reporter will write the teacher’s spoken words; the
text of this lecture will display on a computer monitor or other display device
in English for the deaf or hard-of-hearing student(s) to read. At the
conclusion of each class, the reporter will provide the student(s) with a copy
of the lecture text from the realtime translation either in the format of an
unedited ASCII file on a diskette or a printed copy of the edited text.
The Realtime Educational Reporter should:
A. Work with the instructor for each assigned class to
assure that all the technical terminology for that particular class will be
provided in advance so that it can be entered into the reporter’s computer
dictionary. This will help the reporter maintain a high translation rate, which
is advantageous for both the reporter and the student(s).
B. Keep all assignments strictly confidential.
C. Not participate in class discussion or provide any
advice to the student whom the reporter is assisting. The reporter is there
only to facilitate communication between the student, the instructor, and the
student’s classmates. The reporter will "Realtime" lectures and
classroom activities including orally presented assignments.
D. Arrange equipment so that the student being assisted
is able to watch the reporter’s computer screen and the speaker at the same
time. The translation and text display are usually one to four seconds behind
the speaker, and for this reason it may take the student a few seconds longer
to respond. If at all possible, the instructor must limit the class discussion
to one person speaking at a time.
E. Follow the intent of the speaker at all times. The
reporter shall render as near a verbatim translation as possible, always
conveying the content and spirit of the speaker. If a new term is introduced
that will not translate properly, the reporter may use substitute language that
is computer-translatable when necessary to be understood by the student.
F. Reflect in the text on the reporter’s screen
everything going on in the environment including environmental sounds and
speaker identifiers.
Examples include:
INSTRUCTOR:
MALE STUDENT:
FEMALE STUDENT:
(LAUGHTER)
(APPLAUSE)
(BELL RINGING)
G. Inform the student(s) being assisted that the student
is responsible for recording all nonspoken information, such as material
presented on the chalkboard.
H. Accept assignments using discretion with regard to
skill, setting, and the consumers involved, and accurately represent his or her
credentials for realtime reporting.
I. Work with instructors and all students in each class
to secure cooperation.
J. Have a backup reporter to take over the class in case
of illness.
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Section IV
Guidelines on Providing Uncertified Rough Draft
Transcripts
The Illinois Court Reporters Association and the National
Court Reporters Association realize that in some cases, court reporters are
providing uncertified rough draft transcripts, in either paper or ASCII form,
to parties involved in litigation either in the courtroom or deposition
setting. The Illinois Court Reporters Association and the National Court
Reporters Association suggest the following guidelines be used when providing
such services. These guidelines are intended to aid a court reporter when
providing uncertified rough draft transcripts. Generally speaking, uncertified
rough draft transcripts are provided by court reporters who use realtime
translation, but other court reporters are also providing uncertified rough
draft transcripts as well. These are not mandates, but rather guidelines by
which a court reporter may determine the propriety of his or her conduct in
relation to the litigants, their counsel, the court, allied professions and the
public.
The principal objective when a court reporter provides an
uncertified rough draft transcript of proceedings is to aid in the
administration of justice by rendering a valuable service to the litigants,
their counsel, and the court.
A. A court reporter providing an uncertified rough draft
transcript should perform the task ‘ undertaken by him or her in a professional
manner.
B. A court reporter providing an uncertified rough draft
transcript should keep informed of technological and other advances and
improvements in the skills and methods of his or her profession and strive
constantly for self-improvement.
C. A court reporter providing an uncertified rough draft
transcript should not perform any service under terms or conditions which will
compromise in any way, his or her impartiality or the exercise of good judgment
and skill, or which will adversely affect the fair and impartial portrayal of
the proceeding. Court reporters should offer comparable services to all parties
in a litigation proceeding.
D. An uncertified rough draft transcript should not
include a title page, appearance page, certificate page, any mention of the
swearing in of a witness (in depositions), footer with firm name or reporter
name or CSR#, index page, line numbers starting with 1 for each page, borders
around the text on each page, or time stamping.
E. An uncertified rough draft transcript should include a
header or footer on each page stating "Computer uncertified rough draft
transcript only." A brief disclaimer such as "uncertified rough draft
transcript" should be included in the body of the text occasionally. An
uncertified rough draft transcript provided on paper should be printed on colored
paper, with the words ""uncertified rough draft transcript" hand
stamped on each page. If provided on diskette, the diskette label should be
similarly hand stamped, and the label should be a different color than those
used on diskettes containing the text of certified transcripts. Uncertified
rough draft transcripts should be provided in condensed format only. Page
numbers may be included, but line numbers should be absolute, not starting with
1 for each page.
F. A disclaimer and/or order form should be transmitted as
a cover sheet or cover sheets with each uncertified rough draft transcript
stating that the uncertified rough draft transcript cannot be quoted in any
pleading or for any other purpose and may not be filed with any court. A copy
of the disclaimer and/or order form should be retained by the court reporter.
G. Where possible, all untranslated steno strokes and
conflicts should be resolved before an uncertified rough draft transcript is
provided to any party. An unedited transcript should not be provided without
resolving untranslated steno strokes and conflicts if the untranslated rate is
1.0% or higher.
H. Only court reporters who possess the capability of
providing a substantially readable transcript should attempt to provide an
uncertified rough draft transcript.
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I. Minimum writing skills: conflict-free writing
(software with automatic conflict resolution is recommended); untranslates of
one percent or less; standard punctuation included; and speaker identification
defined.
These are suggested guidelines. If your current writing
skills do not meet these guidelines, don’t let it stop you. Remember, you have
a chance during breaks or on-the-fly to define untranslates and resolve
conflicts. It is recommended that you not supply counsel with a rough draft
ASCII disk or printed transcript until these minimum standards are met.
However, you may be able to provide the disk or uncertified transcript to them
later that day or the next day.
5-8
COMPLAINT PROCEDURES
The following procedures shall be followed in instituting
and resolving complaints that any Member of the Association has violated the
Code of Professional Ethics (CODE) and/or Bylaws of the Association.
A. Filing and Investigation of Complaints
1. Any person may file a complaint against a Member of
the Association. All complaints must be in writing, signed by the person making
the complaint, and addressed to the Executive Director of the Association. All
complaints must contain the name and address of the Member complained against,
a description of the conduct complained of, and references to the specific
provisions of the Code and/or Bylaws involved in the complaint. All complaints
must be accompanied by a written verified affidavit whereby the complainant
affirms that the facts stated in the complaint are true and accurate to the
best of the complainant’s knowledge and belief. The verified affidavit also
must contain the complainant’s authorization of the Association to disclose the
contents of the complaint to the Member complained against, the member of the
Ethics Committee, and Association officers.
2. The Executive Director shall promptly acknowledge
receipt of all complaints and shall provide a copy of these complaint
procedures to the person making the complaint. If the complaint does not
contain all the required information, the Executive Director shall advise the
person making the complaint that further information must be provided before
any further action can be taken, and shall specify what further information is
required. No action shall be taken until all required information has been
provided.
3. The Executive Director shall forward a copy of the
complaint to the Member complained against, along with a copy of these
complaint procedures, and a copy of the Code of Professional Ethics and request
that the Member respond to the complaint in writing within thirty (30) days.
4. In the event that any circumstances may come to the
attention of the President that involve a potential violation of the Code
and/or Bylaws, the President may appoint the most recent past Chairman of the
Ethics Committee, who is willing and able to serve, to investigate and, if
appropriate, file a complaint. The Executive Director shall treat any such
complaint in accordance with the same procedures as if filed by any other
person.
B. Proceedings by the Ethics Committee
1. When the thirty-day (30) period has elapsed, the
Executive Director shall forward the complaint, and the response, if any, to
the Ethics Committee. The Ethics Committee may reach its decision based on the
complaint and the response, if any, or may ask the Executive Director to obtain
additional information. The Committee may also grant an opportunity for the
person making the complaint and the Member complained of to be heard either in
person, through legal counsel, or in a format agreed to by all parties. If the
Committee determines there are disputed issues of fact that are material to its
decision, it shall grant either party an opportunity to present relevant
information, including documents and witnesses, and an opportunity to
cross-examine the witnesses called by the other party. The committee shall be
the judge of the relevance and materiality of any information offered, and
conformity to legal rules of evidence shall not be necessary.
2. The Committee shall thereafter prepare a written
decision containing its findings of fact and conclusions. It may issue a
cautionary letter, warning or statement of advice to the Member. Alternatively,
the Committee may recommend to the Executive Board that the Member be expelled
or suspended (up to one (1) year) from the Association, or may order that the
Member be reprimanded. No expulsion or suspension shall become effective unless
sustained by the Executive Board in accordance with the Bylaws (which requires
a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Executive Board.)
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3. The Committee shall render its decision based on the
complaint and the response, if any, or schedule a hearing date, within ninety
(90) days after the case is initially received from the Executive Director. If
a hearing is scheduled, the Committee shall render its decision within sixty
(60) days after the hearing is completed.
C. Appeals
1. The Executive Director shall promptly send a copy of
the decision of the Ethics Committee to the person making the complaint and the
Member complained against, and advise them that the Committee’s decision will
become final (except for recommendations regarding expulsion or suspension)
unless either party appeals to the Executive Board within thirty (30) days, in
writing, specifying the grounds upon which the party contends the Committee’s
decision is erroneous and should be revised.
2. If no appeal is taken within the thirty-day (30)
period from a decision by the Ethics Committee, the Executive Director shall
forward to the Executive Board the record before the Committee and the
Committee's decision. In such cases, the Board shall decide on the record
before the Committee whether to sustain the Committee's recommendation.
3. Upon receipt of an appeal within the thirty-day (30)
period, the Executive Director shall forward it to the other parties to the
proceeding. Any other party to the proceeding may respond to the appeal within
ten (10) days of receipt. When the ten-day (10) period has elapsed, the
Executive Director shall forward to the Executive Board the appeal, any
response, and all other papers relating to the matter. The Board may decide the
appeal on the basis of these papers, or may grant a request for oral argument
made by any party, in person or through their attorney. The Board may affirm,
reverse, or modify the decision of the Ethics Committee provided, however, that
no greater sanction can be imposed than that recommended by the Ethics
Committee.
D. Costs and Expenses
Each party shall bear his or her own costs and expenses
with respect to any proceeding.
E. Final Actions
At the Executive Board’s discretion, a final action may
be published in the Ad Infinitum for the edification of the Membership provided
that all identifying information about the Member complained against and the
complaining party is deleted.
