04/26/2014
INFORMATION RELEASE ● Production of Court Transcripts
As a result of final settlement of all outstanding grievances between OPSEU and The Ministry of the Attorney General with respect to litigation regarding Hunt et al, commencing June 9, 2014 stakeholders involved in all levels of court proceedings in the Province of Ontario will be able to choose a transcriptionist of their choice to produce certified court transcripts from a website list maintained by a consortium, a company, or a group identified as, Arkley Professional Services. Arkley Professional Services was the successful proponent chosen through the RFP process to hold a contract for three years with the Ministry of the Attorney General to perform the following functions:
• Verifying qualification of candidates for the registered website list of court transcriptionists
• Collecting and managing annual registration fees
• Entering into agreements with authorized court transcriptionists
• Developing and maintaining a publicly accessible, bilingual website of court transcriptionists
• Providing technical support of the website
• Maintaining current standards, regulations and practices to its registered members
• Implementing quality control and complaint resolution mechanisms
MAG court reporters have been given the option to be grandparented on to the registered list and those who have chosen to do so will continue to provide transcription services. As a result, under this new transcript production model, all the talent and expertise that presently exists in the judicial system as it works now will be available to provide transcription services for ordering parties to choose from. Accurate and reliable certified transcripts are produced and delivered to clients by open mic MAG court reporters throughout the province on a daily basis, and for those exceptions where certified transcripts do not meet the professional standard, there will be measuring guidelines and a quality control process in place to ensure client satisfaction facilitated through the above noted process.
However, it needs to be clear, the registered list that will be launched in June of 2014 will also be populated with a number of unknown providers who will enter into the marketplace without sufficient skills or expertise to meet the professional standard required to produce certified court transcripts specifically generated for the judicial court system. In addition, there is the added concern that the proposed training model for future transcriptionists will not meet the professional standards necessary to ensure clients receive quality services or product. Standalone training, without continuing mentoring or an apprenticeship component will not be sufficient in order to produce quality work, and the consumer must take a buyer-beware approach when seeking services from anyone unknown to them, or from anyone who has not been trained properly.
The CRAO Executive team recommends to anyone requiring the services of a professional court transcriptionist, that they seek the proven expertise of a provider that is known to them. The list will be daunting and the ordering party will be offered criteria to choose from, but that is not necessarily the recommended formula for quality or professionalism. Court reporters presently practicing in the courtrooms of this Province are now forming strategies and developing service plans in order to meet market demands within their own communities to keep their business grassroots. They know their clientele, they know their courtrooms, they know how to do their jobs. Producing accurate, high quality court certified transcripts in the most expedient way is what matters to them, because that’s what matters to their clients.
The CRAO is a not-for-profit professional organization of court reporters specializing in different areas of practice and expertise. Please visit the CRAO website www.crao.ca first to verify membership and C.C.R. designation when considering a provider of your choice as a measure to ensure that quality assurance and professional standards for the best product you require are maintained and available to you.
