LA County has spent millions to recruit more court reporters, so why is a shortage dragging on?

Los Angeles County’s courts are sounding the alarm about a consistent shortage of court reporters that officials describe as a “constitutional crisis.”

That's because the lack of available court reporters can lead to delays in civil cases or leave many others without a verbatim record, making it essentially impossible to appeal outcomes.

Court officials are trying to attract new hires and retain the staff they do have through signing bonuses, student loan repayment, and equipment allowances, among others.

But some court reporters say the issue isn’t about enough applicants, it’s L.A. County’s recruitment methods.

“This is affecting people, this is not a far off crisis,” David Slayton, executive officer/clerk of court for the Superior Court of L.A. County, told LAist. “It's affecting everyone's neighbors, friends, and family. What I hope that they know is that this court is doing everything that is within our power to try to address it.”

What this means for people

All juvenile and felony criminal cases in California are required to have a court reporter, while others like criminal misdemeanor and infraction cases are able to use electronic recordings.

But some hearings aren’t allowed to use this method, and when court reporters aren’t mandated either, thousands of people are left without a verbatim record. These include family law, probate, and some civil cases.

Without a verbatim record, court officials said in a statement it’s “essentially impossible” to appeal legal issues such as where children should live in custody disputes, divorces, and conservatorships.

“It forecloses any opportunity of any meaningful review of that decision — what it is that occurred, why the judge made her decision, based on what — is a mystery,” Samantha P. Jessner, the presiding judge of the Superior Court of L.A. County, told LAist.

More than 525,000 proceedings in L.A. County alone went without these records between the beginning of last year to the end of this June, according to the court, with the number climbing each quarter.

The chart shows the number of hearings that were held in family law, probate and unlimited civil courtrooms in quarter increments from January 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024.

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Superior Court of Los Angeles County

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For comparison, about 77,000 hearings went without a verbatim record in early 2023, compared to about 99,000 as of earlier this summer.

Shanna Gray, vice president of the Los Angeles County Court Reporters Association, told LAist they worry about electronic recording because if there’s a problem with that transcript, there’s no way for people to do anything about it. If that happens with a court reporter’s verbatim record — “God forbid” — she noted there’s an established procedure for calling it into question.

You’re allowed to hire a private court reporter, but it can cost about $3,000 to $5,000 a day, which Jessner noted many people cannot afford.

Who are court reporters?

Court reporters take exact records of testimonies and proceedings on a specialized shorthand machine known as a stenograph, which can cost a couple thousand dollars each.

Cindy Tachell, president of the L.A. County Court Reporters Association, told LAist they then create certified transcripts that can be used in various ways.

"Perhaps for an appeal where they want to change the decision, perhaps in family law for revisiting a court's order and as the children get older,” she said.

To get their license, court reporters must pass a three-part exam, which requires typing at 200 words per minute at 97.5% accuracy.

Applicants usually take classes at a state-approved court reporting school ahead of time, which is designed to take three to four years.

Gray added that they’re there to protect the record while everyone else can usually “get the gist of things and be fine”.

“We're kind of like these silent sentinels there in the courtroom,” Gray said.

What court leadership says

L.A. County has 117 vacancies as of Monday, according to the court, which is about 26% of its total court reporting positions.

The court has been losing more reporters than it's able to hire, with a net loss of 117 people since 2018. And despite spending millions of dollars to recruit and retain, they lost 11 court reporters since offering incentives at the beginning of last year, according to the court.

A breakdown of the type of funding spent on recruiting and retaining court reporters in L.A. County, including $50,000 signing bonuses, $25,000 finder's fee, and up to $10,000 retention bonuses.

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Superior Court of Los Angeles County

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Slayton said it’s partly because their workforce is getting older. About two-thirds of active in-state licensees, 3,115 people, received certification more than 23 years ago, according to a March letter from the California Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO).

“The most recent statistic from our court is that over 70% of our court reporter workforce are eligible to retire by age and years of service today,” he said. “So we're seeing more and more people leaving the court.”

Slayton added there also aren't as many people entering the profession, as it can be difficult and expensive. But he believes it could also be a sign of the times as people see technology advancing and wonder if court reporting could still be a long-term profession.

What court reporters say

Tachell said there are plenty of court reporters to fill the vacancies and enough money to hire them, but she believes L.A. County needs to step up their recruitment efforts and messaging.

“Let's streamline the hiring process and get them in the door faster,” she said.

According to the court, they received more than 680 applications from the beginning of last year to the end of this past June, but only 58 people met the minimum qualifications, and less than half of those actually accepted a job offer.

A breakdown of the number of people who applied to be a court reporter in L.A. County's courts, compared to those who actually accepted an offer.

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Superior Court of Los Angeles County

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The L.A. County Court Reporters Association has been trying to work with the court for years, Gray added, including pitching open houses, an internship program, and changing the application process. She said the court has started using some of the ideas, but only as of late.

“You can't expect instant success after so many years of not really being the choice, especially after the layoffs that happened quite a while ago,” Gray said. “So there's sort of a lot of distrust towards L.A., they have a bit of a credibility problem with reporters, and they are doing nothing to address that.”

What the court is doing about it

The court launched its own internal training program in April for staff who are interested in voice writing, which was accepted as a valid record method about two years ago, according to the LAO letter.

“Instead of stenographic where you're using a machine with keys on it, they're speaking into a device that captures the record that way,” Slayton said.

That program takes about a year, and has a “much higher” passage rate, court officials said. About 30 people are moving through the training, which is paid for by the court and is held during their regular hours, according to Sergio Tapia II, assistant presiding judge for the Superior Court of L.A. County.

“We have constant hiring processes going on for court reporters,” Slayton said. “We are advocating for electronic recording to be available when a court reporter is not available. We are doing everything we can, because we realize the nature of the crisis, and, you know, we will not stop until there's a solution that will make sure that people truly have access to justice and they don't walk out without a record.”

You can find more information about what it takes to become a court reporter here and here. The L.A. County Court Reporters Association also holds an educational seminar series.