Official Court Reporter I or II/District Courtroom Clerk

Official Court Reporter I Or II/District Courtroom Clerk

The Administrative Office of the Courts and Probation (AOCP) is accepting applications for a full-time Official Court Reporter I or II/District Courtroom Clerk position in Madison County District Court, 7th Judicial District. Reporting directly to District Court Judge Ryan Stover, this is responsible courtroom work related to capturing and maintaining a verbatim record of court proceedings and other matters of increased complexity.

Court Reporter I and II

Official Court Reporters who would like to work for the AOCP and are not interested in doing freelance court reporting are given the option of having the AOCP purchase and keep updated all of their equipment and software. For stenographic official court reporters, this includes providing you with a laptop, docking station, monitor(s), steno machine, software (Eclipse by Advantage Software or Case CATalyst by Stenograph, LLC), microphone and/or handheld device for making a backup digital audio recording of court proceedings, and secure cloud backup storage. For digital official court reporters, this includes audio recording system (laptop/PC, docking station, microphone(s), mixer), monitor(s), and audio recording software (Liberty Recorder).

Hiring Bonus:

For qualified applicants applying as a District Court Courtroom Clerk, a $2,500 hiring bonus is available. To be considered a qualified applicant, applicants must have obtained their Certified Electronic Reporter (CER) certification.

• Note that $1,250 will be paid at hire and the remaining $1,250 will be paid at the successful completion of the 6-month original provisional period.

For qualified applicants applying as a Court Reporter I or Court Reporter II, a $5,000 hiring bonus is available. To be considered a qualified applicant as a Court Reporter I, applicants must have obtained their Registered Professional Reporter (RPR) or Certified Electronic Court Reporter (CER) or Certified Electronic Transcriber (CET) certification. To be considered a qualified applicant as a Court Reporter II, applicants must have obtained their Certified Realtime Reporter (CRR) or Federal Certified Realtime Reporter (FCRR) certification.

• Note that $2,500 will be paid at hire and the remaining $2,500 will be paid at the successful completion of the 6-month original provisional period.

Minimum Permanent (after probation):

District Court Courtroom Clerk: $41,843.37 annually

Court Reporter I: $58,877.74 annually

Court Reporter II: $68,158.37 annually

District Court Courtroom Clerk

The District Court Courtroom Clerk may perform the following duties to include entering case information in DOCKET, an enhancement of JUSTICE (the court case management system) of the Nebraska Court System used to capture the various parts of the proceeding that, when completed correctly, will generate Judge's Orders and other official court records, pleadings, and other actions. The navigation between screen selections is real time and fast paced. Verbal parts of the court hearing is not completed with a stenograph, the District Courtroom Clerk is responsible for typing portions of Judge's decision in real time; checking and operating electronic recording equipment (computer application based) to record (official court record), log court proceedings; plays back sections of recordings for the judge or jury as requested; maintains automated logs of proceedings and actions; correlates such logged information with recorded data; marks and logs exhibits as they are accepted into the record; makes notations of witness or other participant appearances, behavior, as well as session times etc. to augment the audio record. Performs duties related to maintaining and storing court recordings; supervises signing in of witnesses and maintains courtroom supplies.

Advancement Opportunity:

This position is eligible to advance to an Official Court Reporter I. The Administrative Office of the Courts and Probation will provide online education and reimbursement for the certifications to support this advancement. In addition to an increase in compensation as a Court Reporter I, additional income may be earned for preparing transcripts.

Court Reporter I and II

The Official Court Reporter may perform the following duties to include provide realtime records for court trials, hearings, or conferences, attend courtroom proceedings and other proceedings to make verbatim official recordings, read back transcripts during trial and courtroom proceedings, transcribing the proceedings according to required formats into accurate transcripts for purposes of appeal or by order of the court, review and certify the accuracy of printed transcripts and file in a timely manner, check and operate digital recording equipment to record, log court proceedings, identify participants by name to facilitate reporting; read aloud statements of participants as requested during proceedings, prepare, distribute, and preserve transcripts and related reports and documents, maintain files and records of notes and exhibits, enter case information in DOCKET, an enhancement of JUSTICE (the court case management system), performs clerical duties related to the court, attend meetings and training as required.

Requirements/Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

District Court Courtroom Clerk: High School graduation or equivalent and 2 years of courtroom clerk experience. Education above the high school level may be substituted for work experience on a year for year basis.

Court Reporter I: demonstrate professional competence as defined in Nebraska Supreme Court Rules Relating to Court Reporting Personnel 1-204(A)(2) and 1-204(B) or (C). Those entities approved by the State Court Administrator to conduct these examinations include, the National Court Reporting Association (NCRA), the American Association of Electronic Reporters and Transcribers (AAERT), a state court-reporting certification with requirements equivalent to those of the NCRA, or official documentation from a court reporting school verifying those skills were met upon graduation.

*For those using the method of a multichannel digital recorder, the requirements include passing both the AAERT Certified Electronic Court Reporter (CER) test as well as the AAERT Certified Electronic Transcriber (CET) test in compliance with the Nebraska Supreme Court rules to be classified as a Court Reporter I.

Court Reporter II : demonstrate professional competence as defined in Nebraska Supreme Court Rules Relating to Court Reporting Personnel 1-204(A)(2) and 1-204(B) be certified as a Certified Realtime Reporter (CRR), through the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA) or as a Federal Certified Realtime Reporter (FCRR) or equivalent.

All educational credits must be granted from an accredited institution approved by the U.S. Dept. of Education.

Preferred Qualifications:

District Court Courtroom Clerk, Court Reporter I and Court Reporter II: Legal experience. Bilingual skills in English and Spanish preferred but not required.

Other:

District Court Courtroom Clerk: Successful completion of "on the job training" in JUSTICE (the statewide computer system) within six months of hire will be required. MUST demonstrate professional competence as defined in Nebraska Supreme Court Rules Relating to Court Reporting Personnel 1-204 (F): 1) successful completion of training on use and maintenance of digital recording equipment; 2) ability to promptly diagnose and correct routine malfunctions; 3) proficiency in note taking and logging procedures; 4) knowledge of courtroom procedures and legal vocabulary; 5) knowledge of the proper admission of exhibits to be included in the bill of exceptions; 6) ability to accurately type on a computer while simultaneously monitoring a proceeding. Prolonged sitting, standing, walking, and exposure to the pressure of fast paced courtroom activity and some late hours are possible.

Court Reporter I and II: Must demonstrate professional competence as defined in Nebraska Supreme Court Rules Relating to Court Reporting Personnel 1-204(E). Travel may be required, sitting behind a computer or other equipment for extended periods of time, repetitive motions with wrists, hands, and fingers. Some late hours possible.

The Judicial Branch values our employees as well as a supportive environment that strives to promote diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging. We recruit, hire, train and promote in all job qualifications at all levels without regard to race, religion, sex, age, national origin, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or genetics. The Judicial Branch complies with Veterans Preference Laws.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

District Court Courtroom Clerk:

• Ability to perform clerical functions using various office equipment, to accurately type in real time while monitoring a proceeding, to organize and work under pressure and get along with a variety of people.
• Knowledge of functions and maintenance of court recording equipment.
• Working knowledge of JUSTICE and DOCKET.
• Ability to navigate and select several navigation buttons and options in accordance and response to the type of case, Judge's direction, and other additional information presented during the proceeding; to understand the need for and to assist in promoting a proper and respectful atmosphere in the court room setting.