Transcript Formatting and Proofreading
What the exam tests
Formatting questions reward consistency more than creativity. Know the standard elements of a verbatim legal transcript: a title/caption block identifying the proceeding, the case, the date, and the reporter; speaker designations (often a short form such as Q. and A. in examination, or full names with colons in narrative passages); numbered pages and lines; and a certification block signed by the transcriber. Understand the difference between verbatim (all utterances, including false starts, repeated words, and verbal tics) and clean/edited transcripts, which remove non-substantive material. Most questions assume verbatim unless the prompt says otherwise.
Concepts to know
- Punctuation for interrupted speech (dash), trailing-off speech (ellipsis), and inaudible or unintelligible passages (a bracketed or parenthesized note, used consistently).
- Speaker-change rules: new paragraph on each new speaker, and how to handle overlapping speech.
- Capitalization of titles, court names, and party designations; italicizing case names when the style guide requires it.
- Proofreading method: read against the audio in timed passes, then do a silent read for sense, spelling, and number consistency.
Traps
Questions love "consistency over correctness" scenarios: if the prompt shows an established convention, follow it even if another style is defensible. Watch for distractors that summarize testimony, silently correct grammar, or "fix" a speaker's slang - all violations of verbatim practice. Another trap is assuming corrections belong in the body; substantive corrections are usually noted separately, not woven in.
Rule of thumb
When unsure, ask: Does my change alter what the record says? If yes, don't make it silently. Preserve the words, standardize the mechanics.