KS Court Reporter cheat sheet

Literary transcription: read depositions, correspondence, and documents aloud at a steady pace; produce a verbatim record including false starts, repetitions, and parentheticals such as (laughing) or (indicating).

Jury charge (instructions) is the most formal mode: no interruptions, no clarifications, and no speaker identification brackets; the reporter must capture precise legal phrasing, including statutory citations read into the record.

Testimony is question-and-answer format: each speaker begins a new paragraph, Q. and A. designations are used, and colloquy among counsel and the judge is typically styled as MR./MS. [NAME]: or THE COURT:.

Reporting modes differ by speaker pace: literary is read from text (fastest), jury charge is dictated (moderate, deliberate), testimony is spontaneous (variable, with objections and bench conferences).

Real-time writers must maintain a conflict-free dictionary; untranslated strokes appear as raw steno in the rough draft and must be resolved before certification of the transcript.

When a witness is inaudible, the reporter may state 'I'm sorry, I didn't hear that' or use (Indiscernible) only when the record cannot be clarified; the preferred practice is to ask the speaker to repeat on the record.

Objections are transcribed verbatim, followed by the ruling: 'Objection. Sustained.' or 'Objection. Overruled.'; argument on the objection is captured as colloquy, not as testimony.

Nonverbal and environmental events - a nod, a display of a document, a telephone ringing - are recorded as parentheticals at the point they occur in the record.

Kentucky Court of Justice has four levels: Supreme Court (the court of last resort), Court of Appeals (intermediate appellate), Circuit Court (general jurisdiction, felony, civil, domestic), and District Court (limited jurisdiction).

District Court jurisdiction includes misdemeanors, small claims (up to $2,500), juvenile matters, traffic, and preliminary felony hearings; Circuit Court has original jurisdiction over felonies and civil actions exceeding District Court limits.

Kentucky is divided into 57 judicial circuits and 60 districts; judges are elected on a nonpartisan ballot, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court is chosen by the justices, not by popular election.

Appeals to the Court of Appeals are as a matter of right in most cases; discretionary review by the Kentucky Supreme Court follows a motion for discretionary review under CR 76.20.

Venue in Kentucky civil actions is governed by KRS 452.400 et seq. and CR 3; a corporation's residence for venue purposes includes its registered office or principal place of business.

The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) supports all levels of the Kentucky Court of Justice, including court reporting services, interpreter services, and records management.

Kentucky uses the Kentucky Rules of Civil Procedure (CR) and Kentucky Rules of Criminal Procedure (RCr); the Rules of the Supreme Court (SCR) govern practice and professional conduct, including SCR 3.130 (Rules of Professional Conduct).

Court reporters in Kentucky official courts are officers of the court; transcripts are filed with the clerk, and the official record is the transcript certified by the reporter, not the audio recording.

The reporter's duty of impartiality: record the proceedings accurately regardless of which party benefits; never alter, omit, or summarize testimony to favor a party.

Confidentiality attaches to grand jury proceedings, juvenile matters, sealed records, and in-chambers or bench conferences ordered off the record; disclosure requires a court order.

Ex parte communication with a judge or a party about a pending case is prohibited; reporters do not give legal advice or speculate about outcomes.

Conflict of interest: a reporter who is related to a party, counsel, or witness, or who has a financial interest in the outcome, must disclose the relationship so the court can decide on reassignment.

Certification is personal: the reporter certifies that the transcript is a true and correct record; a reporter may not certify a transcript prepared by another without verifying it.

Fees and transcript charges should follow the court's fee schedule or the parties' agreement; charging different rates to different parties for the same transcript may raise ethical concerns.

Reporting a proceeding that is off the record: the reporter must follow the judge's instruction; if uncertain, the reporter asks on the record whether the proceeding is being recorded.

Professional conduct is governed by SCR 3.130 as adopted in Kentucky; violations may be referred to the Kentucky Bar Association's inquiry commission, and court reporters may face contempt or removal.

Certification page includes the reporter's name, certificate number if applicable, the case caption, the date, the signature, and language such as 'I hereby certify that the foregoing is a true and correct transcript.'

Formatting conventions: title page with court, county, case number, parties, and date; appearance page listing counsel; index of witnesses and exhibits; 25 numbered lines per page is the common format.

Exhibits are marked and identified in the transcript by number or letter; the reporter notes the exhibit's admission or rejection in the record.

Rough drafts are not certified transcripts; a certified transcript must be proofread against the record, with page and line references corrected before the certificate is signed.

Retention: official court reporters' notes and transcripts are public records retained under the Kentucky Court of Justice records retention schedule; the AOC sets retention periods, and reporters do not destroy notes without authorization.

Electronic files (CAT, audio, backup) should be preserved for the same retention period as the paper notes; the certified transcript is the permanent record.

Turnaround and delivery: the reporter provides the transcript to the ordering party and files the original with the clerk as required by the court's order or rules.

Corrections after certification require a court order; a reporter may file an errata sheet or a corrected transcript only with leave of court, and the original certification remains part of the record.

Common legal terms: plaintiff, defendant, appellant, appellee, movant, respondent, deposition, interrogatory, subpoena duces tecum, hearsay, voir dire, allocution, remittitur.

Latin and Law French terms used in Kentucky practice: res judicata, stare decisis, sua sponte, pro se, in forma pauperis, nunc pro tunc, voir dire, estoppel, tortfeasor.

Medical terminology: plaintiff's injuries are described with terms such as cervical, lumbar, radiculopathy, herniated disc, contusion, laceration, prognosis, and exacerbation; spelling errors change meaning, so verify against records.

Homophones to distinguish: 'statute' vs. 'statue,' 'principal' vs. 'principle,' 'counsel' vs. 'council,' 'elicit' vs. 'illicit,' 'discreet' vs. 'discrete,' 'affect' vs. 'effect.'

Punctuation in transcripts: use the em dash for interrupted speech, ellipsis for trailing off, and brackets for editorial insertions; do not add punctuation that changes meaning.

Numbers and dates: spell out numbers one through ten in literary text unless they are measurements or legal citations; use figures for dates, times, and dollar amounts.

Grammar: maintain subject-verb agreement in colloquy, use the serial comma consistently, and capitalize 'Court' when referring to the presiding judge in the record.

Deposition officers in Kentucky are appointed under CR 28.01; the officer must be a disinterested person, and the reporter may serve as the officer unless a party objects.

Depositions begin with the officer's statement: the case caption, the witness's name, the oath or affirmation, and the identity of counsel present.

Objections in depositions are noted for the record; under CR 30.03, counsel states the objection concisely and the examination continues, except as to privilege.

Discovery tools include interrogatories (CR 33), requests for production (CR 34), requests for admission (CR 36), depositions (CR 30-31), and physical or mental examinations (CR 35).

Pretrial conferences under CR 16 address simplification of issues, amendment of pleadings, and settlement; the reporter's transcript of the conference may be part of the record if ordered.

Depositions may be used at trial for impeachment or when the witness is unavailable, subject to the Kentucky Rules of Evidence, particularly KRE 804.

Errata: a deponent may review the transcript and make corrections in form or substance within the time allowed by the notice or rule; the reporter attaches the errata sheet to the original transcript.

Notice requirements: the party noticing a deposition must state the time, place, and manner of recording, and whether it will be by stenographic, audio, or audiovisual means.

KRE 103: error may not be predicated on a ruling unless a timely objection or motion to strike appears of record, stating the specific ground if the ground is not apparent.

KRE 611: the court controls the mode and order of interrogation; leading questions are generally permitted on cross-examination and prohibited on direct examination except as needed.

KRE 801-802: hearsay is an out-of-court statement offered for the truth of the matter; it is inadmissible unless an exception in KRE 803, 804, or 807 applies.

KRE 702: expert testimony requires a witness qualified by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education, and the testimony must assist the trier of fact.

KRE 615: at a party's request, the court orders witnesses excluded so they cannot hear other testimony; the rule does not authorize excluding a party or a designated officer.

KRE 606(b): a juror may not testify about deliberations or the effect of anything on a juror's mind, but may testify about extraneous prejudicial information or outside influence.

Courtroom procedure: the clerk administers the oath to witnesses and jurors, the judge rules on objections, and the reporter records sidebar conferences only at the judge's direction.

Opening statements and closing arguments are recorded as part of the trial record; the reporter identifies the speaker by name and role, e.g., 'MR. SMITH (for the plaintiff).'

Kentucky Supreme Court: seven justices, one from each of seven appellate districts; the Chief Justice is elected by the justices and serves as head of the judicial branch.

Court of Appeals: fourteen judges elected from seven appellate districts; panels of three decide cases, and the court sits in Frankfort.

Circuit Court: 57 circuits, general jurisdiction over felonies, civil cases, and domestic relations; family court divisions handle divorce, custody, and child support.

District Court: 60 districts, limited jurisdiction including misdemeanors, small claims up to $2,500, juvenile, traffic, and felony preliminary hearings.

Small claims procedure under KRS 24A.200 et seq. uses simplified forms, no formal pleadings, and a hearing before a district judge.

Judicial elections in Kentucky are nonpartisan; candidates run without party designation, and judicial campaigns are subject to the Judicial Campaign Conduct Committee.

The Kentucky Judicial Conduct Commission investigates complaints against judges; the Judicial Retirement and Removal Commission handles discipline including removal.

Filing and service of process follow the CR; a civil action commences with the filing of a complaint, and the summons must be served within the time allowed by CR 4.

Literary transcription: read depositions, correspondence, and documents aloud at a steady pace; produce a verbatim record including false starts, repetitions, and parentheticals such as (laughing) or (indicating).

Jury charge (instructions) is the most formal mode: no interruptions, no clarifications, and no speaker identification brackets; the reporter must capture precise legal phrasing, including statutory citations read into the record.

Testimony is question-and-answer format: each speaker begins a new paragraph, Q. and A. designations are used, and colloquy among counsel and the judge is typically styled as MR./MS. [NAME]: or THE COURT:.

Reporting modes differ by speaker pace: literary is read from text (fastest), jury charge is dictated (moderate, deliberate), testimony is spontaneous (variable, with objections and bench conferences).

Real-time writers must maintain a conflict-free dictionary; untranslated strokes appear as raw steno in the rough draft and must be resolved before certification of the transcript.

When a witness is inaudible, the reporter may state 'I'm sorry, I didn't hear that' or use (Indiscernible) only when the record cannot be clarified; the preferred practice is to ask the speaker to repeat on the record.

Objections are transcribed verbatim, followed by the ruling: 'Objection. Sustained.' or 'Objection. Overruled.'; argument on the objection is captured as colloquy, not as testimony.

Nonverbal and environmental events - a nod, a display of a document, a telephone ringing - are recorded as parentheticals at the point they occur in the record.

Kentucky Court of Justice has four levels: Supreme Court (the court of last resort), Court of Appeals (intermediate appellate), Circuit Court (general jurisdiction, felony, civil, domestic), and District Court (limited jurisdiction).

District Court jurisdiction includes misdemeanors, small claims (up to $2,500), juvenile matters, traffic, and preliminary felony hearings; Circuit Court has original jurisdiction over felonies and civil actions exceeding District Court limits.

Kentucky is divided into 57 judicial circuits and 60 districts; judges are elected on a nonpartisan ballot, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court is chosen by the justices, not by popular election.

Appeals to the Court of Appeals are as a matter of right in most cases; discretionary review by the Kentucky Supreme Court follows a motion for discretionary review under CR 76.20.

Venue in Kentucky civil actions is governed by KRS 452.400 et seq. and CR 3; a corporation's residence for venue purposes includes its registered office or principal place of business.

The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) supports all levels of the Kentucky Court of Justice, including court reporting services, interpreter services, and records management.

Kentucky uses the Kentucky Rules of Civil Procedure (CR) and Kentucky Rules of Criminal Procedure (RCr); the Rules of the Supreme Court (SCR) govern practice and professional conduct, including SCR 3.130 (Rules of Professional Conduct).

Court reporters in Kentucky official courts are officers of the court; transcripts are filed with the clerk, and the official record is the transcript certified by the reporter, not the audio recording.

The reporter's duty of impartiality: record the proceedings accurately regardless of which party benefits; never alter, omit, or summarize testimony to favor a party.

Confidentiality attaches to grand jury proceedings, juvenile matters, sealed records, and in-chambers or bench conferences ordered off the record; disclosure requires a court order.

Ex parte communication with a judge or a party about a pending case is prohibited; reporters do not give legal advice or speculate about outcomes.

Conflict of interest: a reporter who is related to a party, counsel, or witness, or who has a financial interest in the outcome, must disclose the relationship so the court can decide on reassignment.

Certification is personal: the reporter certifies that the transcript is a true and correct record; a reporter may not certify a transcript prepared by another without verifying it.

Fees and transcript charges should follow the court's fee schedule or the parties' agreement; charging different rates to different parties for the same transcript may raise ethical concerns.

Reporting a proceeding that is off the record: the reporter must follow the judge's instruction; if uncertain, the reporter asks on the record whether the proceeding is being recorded.

Professional conduct is governed by SCR 3.130 as adopted in Kentucky; violations may be referred to the Kentucky Bar Association's inquiry commission, and court reporters may face contempt or removal.

Certification page includes the reporter's name, certificate number if applicable, the case caption, the date, the signature, and language such as 'I hereby certify that the foregoing is a true and correct transcript.'

Formatting conventions: title page with court, county, case number, parties, and date; appearance page listing counsel; index of witnesses and exhibits; 25 numbered lines per page is the common format.

Exhibits are marked and identified in the transcript by number or letter; the reporter notes the exhibit's admission or rejection in the record.

Rough drafts are not certified transcripts; a certified transcript must be proofread against the record, with page and line references corrected before the certificate is signed.

Retention: official court reporters' notes and transcripts are public records retained under the Kentucky Court of Justice records retention schedule; the AOC sets retention periods, and reporters do not destroy notes without authorization.

Electronic files (CAT, audio, backup) should be preserved for the same retention period as the paper notes; the certified transcript is the permanent record.

Turnaround and delivery: the reporter provides the transcript to the ordering party and files the original with the clerk as required by the court's order or rules.

Corrections after certification require a court order; a reporter may file an errata sheet or a corrected transcript only with leave of court, and the original certification remains part of the record.

Common legal terms: plaintiff, defendant, appellant, appellee, movant, respondent, deposition, interrogatory, subpoena duces tecum, hearsay, voir dire, allocution, remittitur.

Latin and Law French terms used in Kentucky practice: res judicata, stare decisis, sua sponte, pro se, in forma pauperis, nunc pro tunc, voir dire, estoppel, tortfeasor.

Medical terminology: plaintiff's injuries are described with terms such as cervical, lumbar, radiculopathy, herniated disc, contusion, laceration, prognosis, and exacerbation; spelling errors change meaning, so verify against records.

Homophones to distinguish: 'statute' vs. 'statue,' 'principal' vs. 'principle,' 'counsel' vs. 'council,' 'elicit' vs. 'illicit,' 'discreet' vs. 'discrete,' 'affect' vs. 'effect.'

Punctuation in transcripts: use the em dash for interrupted speech, ellipsis for trailing off, and brackets for editorial insertions; do not add punctuation that changes meaning.

Numbers and dates: spell out numbers one through ten in literary text unless they are measurements or legal citations; use figures for dates, times, and dollar amounts.

Grammar: maintain subject-verb agreement in colloquy, use the serial comma consistently, and capitalize 'Court' when referring to the presiding judge in the record.

Deposition officers in Kentucky are appointed under CR 28.01; the officer must be a disinterested person, and the reporter may serve as the officer unless a party objects.

Depositions begin with the officer's statement: the case caption, the witness's name, the oath or affirmation, and the identity of counsel present.

Objections in depositions are noted for the record; under CR 30.03, counsel states the objection concisely and the examination continues, except as to privilege.

Discovery tools include interrogatories (CR 33), requests for production (CR 34), requests for admission (CR 36), depositions (CR 30-31), and physical or mental examinations (CR 35).

Pretrial conferences under CR 16 address simplification of issues, amendment of pleadings, and settlement; the reporter's transcript of the conference may be part of the record if ordered.

Depositions may be used at trial for impeachment or when the witness is unavailable, subject to the Kentucky Rules of Evidence, particularly KRE 804.

Errata: a deponent may review the transcript and make corrections in form or substance within the time allowed by the notice or rule; the reporter attaches the errata sheet to the original transcript.

Notice requirements: the party noticing a deposition must state the time, place, and manner of recording, and whether it will be by stenographic, audio, or audiovisual means.

KRE 103: error may not be predicated on a ruling unless a timely objection or motion to strike appears of record, stating the specific ground if the ground is not apparent.

KRE 611: the court controls the mode and order of interrogation; leading questions are generally permitted on cross-examination and prohibited on direct examination except as needed.

KRE 801-802: hearsay is an out-of-court statement offered for the truth of the matter; it is inadmissible unless an exception in KRE 803, 804, or 807 applies.

KRE 702: expert testimony requires a witness qualified by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education, and the testimony must assist the trier of fact.

KRE 615: at a party's request, the court orders witnesses excluded so they cannot hear other testimony; the rule does not authorize excluding a party or a designated officer.

KRE 606(b): a juror may not testify about deliberations or the effect of anything on a juror's mind, but may testify about extraneous prejudicial information or outside influence.

Courtroom procedure: the clerk administers the oath to witnesses and jurors, the judge rules on objections, and the reporter records sidebar conferences only at the judge's direction.

Opening statements and closing arguments are recorded as part of the trial record; the reporter identifies the speaker by name and role, e.g., 'MR. SMITH (for the plaintiff).'

Kentucky Supreme Court: seven justices, one from each of seven appellate districts; the Chief Justice is elected by the justices and serves as head of the judicial branch.

Court of Appeals: fourteen judges elected from seven appellate districts; panels of three decide cases, and the court sits in Frankfort.

Circuit Court: 57 circuits, general jurisdiction over felonies, civil cases, and domestic relations; family court divisions handle divorce, custody, and child support.

District Court: 60 districts, limited jurisdiction including misdemeanors, small claims up to $2,500, juvenile, traffic, and felony preliminary hearings.

Small claims procedure under KRS 24A.200 et seq. uses simplified forms, no formal pleadings, and a hearing before a district judge.

Judicial elections in Kentucky are nonpartisan; candidates run without party designation, and judicial campaigns are subject to the Judicial Campaign Conduct Committee.

The Kentucky Judicial Conduct Commission investigates complaints against judges; the Judicial Retirement and Removal Commission handles discipline including removal.

Filing and service of process follow the CR; a civil action commences with the filing of a complaint, and the summons must be served within the time allowed by CR 4.