Electronic Court Reporting bombshell!

The Recorder has Defying State Law, LA Superior Court Expands Electronic Case Recording -- Los Angeles County Superior Court Presiding Judge Samantha Jessner said the court must use electronic recording to overcome a "constitutional crisis" tied to a lack of available court reporter.

Defying state law and the Legislature, Los Angeles County Superior Court’s presiding judge issued an order Thursday expanding the use of electronic recording in the mammoth trial court’s courtrooms.

Presiding Judge Samantha Jessner’s order, unveiled during an online press conference, allows clerks to immediately begin using electronic recording equipment in family law, probate and unlimited jurisdiction civil proceedings when no court reporters are available and the matter involves “significant legal and/or factual issues” where a verbatim record is necessary for a possible appeal.

A statement issued Thursday morning by the trade group California Court Reporters Association called Jessner’s order “unlawful.”

Law360 has LA Courts Expand Recordings, Citing Court Reporter Shortage