Court Reporting Practice and Procedures
What the exam tests
This domain covers the reporter’s role before, during, and after a New Mexico proceeding: setting up the record, administering oaths, marking exhibits, handling objections, going on and off the record, and preserving a complete verbatim record. Expect scenario questions about depositions under NMRA 1-030, district court hearings, and the reporter’s duty when participants speak over one another.
Core rules
- Administer the oath or affirmation to every witness before testimony; record the oath in the transcript.
- Keep the record verbatim, including objections, colloquy, rulings, and exhibit markings. Do not summarize.
- In court, only the judge controls the record. An attorney’s request to go off the record is not effective without the judge’s direction.
- In a deposition, the reporter may stop only when all parties stipulate or the deposition is adjourned; note any stipulation.
- Mark exhibits with a consistent designation (Plaintiff’s Exhibit 1, Defendant’s Exhibit A), state the marking on the record, and preserve custody.
- Handle read-backs and interpreter testimony carefully: record the interpreter’s oath and identify who is speaking.
Worked example
During a hearing, defense counsel says, “Let’s go off the record.” The judge says nothing. The reporter should continue recording and note the request and lack of ruling. If the judge says, “We’ll stand in recess,” the reporter may stop and note the time. Reasoning: the judge controls the court record; an attorney cannot unilaterally close it.
Traps
Stopping for an attorney’s off-record request in court; failing to swear a witness; omitting bench conferences; labeling exhibits inconsistently; recording “objection” without the ground; treating a deposition as a court hearing.