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Legislative Update

CONTENTS

  1. Court Reporters, Court Proceedings and the Law
  2. Legislative Reminders
  3. ORS statutes pertaining to depositions/other proceedings
  4. July 2007 Legislative Consultant Report
  5. 2007 Legislative News - Archive.pdf
  6. 2006 Legislative News - Archives.pdf
  7. 2005 Legislative News - Archive.pdf

COURT REPORTERS, COURT PROCEEDINGS AND THE LAW

JANUARY 2008

It’s a changing world in the court reporting profession, and Oregon has seen its fair share of change in recent years. State budget shortfalls resulted in layoffs and retirement of the majority of official court reporters in 2002 and 2003. What soon followed was an increasing influx of freelance court reporters in court proceedings as lawyers and litigants wanted to be assured of an accurate record and utilize litigation tools provided by court reporters, such as realtime and daily copy.

In the wake of this change, OCRA strongly supported the passage of legislation with regard to freelance court reporters being designated as the official court record and negotiated appellate transcript fees. The accompanying table denotes a summary of the Oregon Revised Statutes which relate to the court record and appellate transcript matters. Reporters and agencies hired to report court proceedings should familiarize themselves with the specific language of the statutes, in addition to the appellate transcript guidelines and procedures.

The OCRA website will be updated to include this information, and the "What’s New" link contains some helpful information with regard to reporter as the official record. In addition, as OCRA’s Legislative Committee chair and a current official reporter in Marion County, I’m happy to answer any inquiries at fagan56@hotmail.com or 503-588-5031.

COURT REPORTERS, COURT PROCEEDINGS AND THE LAW

STATUTE/RULE

PROVISIONS

ORS 8.340
  • Clarifies that parties in civil trials may use the services of a freelance court reporter, and the record provided by the court reporter can be the official record for appeal purposes if all parties agree.
  • Requires that the party or parties pay for all of the services provided by the court reporter, including transcripts and other services provided to the judge.
  • The reporter SHALL BE CERTIFIED under Oregon’s CSR program or a nationally recognized certification program. (Note: Be prepared to show proof of certification.)
  • The reporter shall file their notes with the clerk of the court. ("Notes" comprise steno paper or electronic file.)

ORS 19.370
  • General provisions related to the appellate record, including filing the transcript 30 days after the notice of appeal has been filed, appellate mediation program, and multiple parties to an appeal other than the appellant.

ORS 21.470
  • A reporter employed by one of the parties may charge fees p/page as agreed to between the reporter and all parties to the proceeding for preparing transcripts on appeal
  • This agreement regarding fees shall take place PRIOR to the proceedings being reported and ALL parties must agree on the fee arrangement
  • The transcript on appeal MUST be prepared per the Oregon Rules of Appellate Procedure (Section 3.35 – form of transcript)

ORS 21.470 Exceptions
  • Circuit court reporters appointed under a personnel plan and reporting proceedings MAY NOT charge more than the statutory rate.
  • A reporter employed by one of the parties MAY NOT charge a public body, as defined by ORS 174.109, fees that exceed the statutory rate.

ORAP 3.30-3.35
　

NOTE: Refer to the statutes/rules for exact language.

These provisions are in summary form only.

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LEGISLATIVE REMINDERS – JANUARY 2008

The 2007 legislative session has come and gone, and now comes the time to remind OCRA’s membership of this busy and successful session for OCRA.

SB 292-A was successfully passed and became law effective January 1st of this year. This bill clarifies and amends ORS 8.340 which, among other things, allows stenographic reporters hired by parties in court proceedings to be designated the official record for purposes of appeal if all parties agree. Additionally, the stenographic reporter shall be certified under Oregon’s CSR program or by a nationally recognized certification program. Updates to the Oregon Revised Statutes will be available in February 2008 and can be found online. Until that time, you can view the Enrolled SB 292-A at the following site: http://www.leg.state.or.us/bills_laws/home.htm.

SB 445, which required a certified stenographic reporter on all aggravated murder trials and hearings passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee, but did not receive a hearing in the Joint Ways & Means Committee. The Judicial Department requested funding for a similar pilot program, but the money was not provided for in the budget process. However, it appears OJD may now have some funds available to initiate the pilot program, which Chief Justice De Muniz remains supportive of. The State Court Administrator’s office is waiting for an aggravated murder trial to be held in the Willamette Valley/Portland area to use as a test case for setting the framework for the pilot program.

Dave Barrows and Lara Smith of Barrows & Associates continue to work closely with the Legislative Committee and their services remain invaluable. In 2008 they will be monitoring the upcoming special session of the Oregon Legislature, in addition to several initiatives filed with the Secretary of State on the issue of lawyer’s fees and lawsuits. Lara Smith is also maintaining contact with the Judicial Department on issues of importance to OCRA and the reporting profession.

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