Veterans Day Closure:

The Court will be closed Wednesday, November 11th in observance of Veterans Day. Court Holidays »

Court Reporter & Electronic Recording Information

54 Trial Court CEOs Issue News Release: There is a Court Reporter Crisis in California

Record of Proceedings

Local Rules of Court, Rule 1(I) explains how the record of proceedings is made in the Lassen Superior Court. The text of that rule follows:

The services of an official court reporter are normally available in the Felony and Juvenile departments only. An official court reporter is not normally available in the Civil, Misdemeanor, and Traffic departments. Pursuant to Government Code section 69957 and California Rules of Court, rule 2.952, in limited civil actions and criminal misdemeanor and infraction proceedings, the court, at its sole discretion, may utilize electronic recording as a means of generating a verbatim record of proceedings. In those instances, court reporters will not be provided.

 

Pursuant to California Rules of Court, rule 2.956, the court does not provide court reporters for hearings in the following matters:

  1. All civil case management conferences
  2. All civil settlement conferences
  3. All civil ex parte application hearings
  4. All hearings regarding Unlawful Detainers, Name Changes, or Small Claims
  5. All infraction hearings

In accordance with Government Code section 68086 and California Rules of Court, rule 2.956, when a party requests a court reporter and the reporter is not required by the forgoing statute to report the court proceedings, the matter will proceed as scheduled without reporting services. On the condition it does not cause a continuation of the proceedings, a party has the right to arrange, at the party's own expense, the services of a court reporter if the services of an official court reporter are not available for a proceeding (Local Rule of Court No. 16). The court does not facilitate the attendance of private reporters.

 

Unless otherwise required by statute, the parties shall be responsible for transcript costs pursuant to Government Code section 69953.

 

The court may electronically record any hearing or proceeding for its internal use. Any such recording shall not constitute an official record of the proceeding that was recorded.

Other Rules Relating to Court Reporters and Electronic Recordings

Privately Retained Official Court Reporter Pro Tempore

A party has the right to arrange, at the party's own expense, for the services of a court reporter if the services of an official court reporter are not available for a proceeding (Government Code section 68086 and California Rules of Court, rule 2.956). Local Rules of Court, Rule 16 sets out the court's policy.

When This Policy Applies

Rule 16 applies to hearings and trials in the Civil, Family, and Probate Divisions in unlimited civil matters, limited civil matters to the extent not electronically recorded, and probate matters.

Rule 16 does not cover proceedings in which an official court reporter is mandated, including criminal felony, juvenile dependency, and juvenile delinquency cases, and family law matters where an official court reporter is mandated. For questions about reporting services in a specific proceeding, contact the clerk's office at (530) 251-8205.

Arranging for a Reporter

  • Arrange in advance. A party who wants a proceeding reported must arrange for a privately retained court reporter before the proceeding.
  • File form LSC-MIS-200. File LSC-MIS-200, Request for Appointment of Official Reporter Pro Tempore with the court at least 5 days before the hearing, unless the court orders otherwise. If the judicial officer has not received the request in time to approve it before the hearing, the court has the discretion to deny it.
  • Reporter completes the form. The reporter must complete and sign sections 1, 2, and 3 of form LSC-MIS-200.
  • Appointment before the hearing. The reporter must be appointed as an official reporter pro tempore before the hearing begins. The judicial officer must sign the order of appointment on form LSC-MIS-200 before the reporter may report the proceeding.

Only One Official Record

There can be only one official record of court proceedings, and only a reporter appointed by the court may report a court proceeding. Only one reporter will be allowed to report a court proceeding at any given time. If the parties cannot agree on a reporter, the judicial officer will make the selection. Attorneys and parties should confer with each other in advance to avoid having more than one reporter arranged for the same matter.

Fees and Transcripts

  • Fees. The party arranging for an official reporter pro tempore is responsible for paying the reporter's fees, including appearance, transcript, and real-time fees, although the parties may agree to share the fees on terms they negotiate (California Rules of Court, rule 2.956(c)). All fees must be paid directly to the court reporter and may not be charged to the court.
  • Transcripts. Transcripts produced by an official reporter pro tempore are treated, for court purposes, the same as transcripts prepared by official reporters. The judicial officer may order any party who arranges for transcription by the official reporter pro tempore to lodge a copy of the transcript with the court.

See Local Rules of Court, Rule 16 for the court's complete policy, including the reporter's qualifications and obligations.

Requesting Transcripts of Court Proceedings

Transcripts are obtained directly from the court reporter who reported the proceeding. To get contact information for the court reporter of a particular proceeding, contact the court at TranscriptRequests@lassencourt.ca.gov or (530) 251-8205.

When requesting a transcript from a court reporter, include at least the following:

  • Case name
  • Case number
  • Date of proceeding(s)
  • Name of judge
  • Contact phone number

Unless otherwise required by statute, parties are responsible for transcript costs (Government Code section 69953; Local Rule 1(I)).

Electronic Recordings

In limited civil actions and criminal misdemeanor and infraction proceedings, the court, at its sole discretion, may use electronic recording as a means of generating a verbatim record of proceedings. In those instances, court reporters will not be provided (Government Code section 69957; California Rules of Court, rule 2.952; Local Rule 1(I)).

Note: The court may also electronically record any hearing or proceeding for its internal use. Such recordings are not an official record of the proceeding (Local Rule 1(I)).

Requesting a Copy of a Recording

To request a copy of an electronically recorded proceeding, email RecordingRequests@lassencourt.ca.gov. Include the following:

  • Name and telephone number of the requester
  • Case name
  • Case number
  • Date of proceeding(s)
  • Name of judge

Audio recordings are provided on CD for $10 per disc (Government Code section 70631). Please allow 10 to 15 working days for processing. You will be contacted when your disc is ready for pickup.

To play the CD, download the free FTR Player from For The Record (fortherecord.com).

Appellate Division

The following rules apply only to proceedings in the Appellate Division.

Court Reporters

Sessions of the Appellate Division are not reported by a court reporter unless a party requests one at least one week before the date set for the hearing (Local Rule 10(F)).

Electronic Recordings on Appeal

  • Recording as the record of oral proceedings. A judicial officer may order that the original of an official electronic recording of the trial court proceedings, or a copy made by the court, be sent to the Appellate Division as the record of oral proceedings in a limited civil, misdemeanor, or infraction case, without being transcribed and in place of correcting the appellant's proposed statement on appeal, when the judicial officer determines this would save court time and resources. This applies only if the appellant elects a statement on appeal as the record of oral proceedings (Local Rule 10(L)(1); California Rules of Court, rules 8.837(d)(6)(A), 8.869(d)(6)(A), and 8.916(d)(6)(A)).
  • Recording as the official record. Under Government Code section 69957, certain court proceedings may be electronically recorded when a court reporter is not available, and the recording serves as the official record of the proceeding. Where an electronic recording serves as the official record, a party may request a copy by completing a Request for Copy of Electronically Recorded Proceeding form and submitting it to the Clerk of the Court at the Hall of Justice, 2610 Riverside Drive, Susanville, CA 96130. A fee of $10 is charged for each copy requested (Government Code section 70631; Local Rule 10(L)(2)).

For all other rules governing the Appellate Division, see Local Rules of Court, Rule 10.