Lawsuit expenses can inflate quickly because lawyers need to tap into professional resources to make a case, and many of those resources cost additional money. Even if you avoid major line items like expert witnesses or private investigators, small expenses like document request fees and court filing fees add up. On top of that, some basic functions of the process require additional personnel. One example is the deposition process. Since depositions are on the record, court reporters are frequently needed. In other circumstances, such as mediated negotiations, they may also be required.

Doesn’t the Court Pay?

Boston court reporters are paid by the circuit court system when they are assigned as staff for courtroom proceedings and in some other circumstances, like on the record conversations in a judge’s chambers. Regular court fees and budget appropriations cover those expenses. If they are needed for off-site functions like depositions or added as optional additional staff to a binding, mediated negotiation, then the parties involved need to pay them. Typically, the side conducting the deposition pays, so when you are deposing witnesses, your lawyer expenses you for the reporter.

How Your Lawyer Finds Court Reporters

Court reporters work through accredited agencies that ensure they have the credentials to serve. Those agencies are then contacted by lawyers needing depositions as well as courts in the area seeking reporters. Some also work directly for the courts, but if they are available for off-site assignments, you’ll still find them listed with an agency. When your lawyer needs a reporter, the agencies use standard rates for billing, so the prices tend to be quite competitive. Seeing a new line-item expense might be jarring, but it is a normal part of conducting litigation, and every case that goes to trial winds up needing a reporter for depositions sooner or later. The only way around it is to negotiate a settlement before depositions are needed.