Court Reporting Professional Practice and Ethics
What the domain tests
Ethics questions test your conduct as a neutral officer of the record: confidentiality, impartiality, conflicts, ex parte communications, transcript integrity, fee practices, and retention. Missouri court reporters are expected to follow the state's certification framework and the court's directives, not a party's preference.
Core rules
- Remain neutral. Do not give legal advice, suggest testimony, or explain procedure to a witness.
- Do not accept ex parte instructions about the record from one side. Confirm record-related directions on the record or with all parties present.
- Disclose any relationship that could reasonably create a conflict, including employment by a party or prior work for counsel.
- Do not alter, delete, or 'correct' a transcript except by proper procedure and court order. Preserve original notes and audio according to the required retention period.
- Keep proceedings and transcripts confidential unless release is authorized by law, rule, or court order.
- Charge and collect fees consistently with the applicable schedule or contract; do not condition testimony or certification on payment beyond what the rules allow.
Worked example
After a deposition, one attorney asks you to remove an objection and the ruling because it 'makes the record messy.' You should decline, explain that the transcript must reflect what occurred, and note that any correction requires the proper procedure or court order. Removing the exchange would alter the official record and could expose you to discipline and undermine the transcript's integrity.
Traps
- Treating a friendly request from one side as authority to change the record.
- Discussing testimony with a party or witness outside the proceeding.
- Destroying notes as soon as the transcript is produced.
- Accepting a conflict because 'both sides agreed.'