| Joyful Scoping |
| We can accomplish great things when we work together!! |
| Joyful Leads Program for Court Reporters |
The Advantages of Using Scopist of Joyful Scoping Leads
Joyful Scoping Leads is really excited about the partnerships it has made with several court reporters in
the U.S. and internationally.
A scopist is an individual who is professionally trained with the computer-assisted transcription (CAT)
program to edit court transcripts. They take the rough version of a court reporter’s translated file and
edit it for all aspects of punctuation, context, readability and formatting. This includes researching all
proper nouns for accuracy. The skill of reading stenographic notes is important so the scopist can add
any untranslated notes into the CAT dictionary and apply those to the entire document. This insures
that the document has the least number of untranslates to work with.
When the “scoped” file is returned to the court reporter, the file is not expected to be in its final form.
It is expected that the file will have a final proofing applied to it before submission of the final edited
product by the court reporter.
As scopists, our goal is two-fold:
First, we always want to make you, the court reporter, look the best you can in the near-final view of
your transcript. Many court reporters understand the importance of two sets of eyes reviewing and
editing the document before it is turned in as the final product.
Second, we think communication in this relationship is very important. This begins with the email
communication to you confirming receipt of the file which is followed by communication every 24
hours regarding the status of the project.
We like to receive a sample of your completed work in the CAT program because it provides us with a
lot of preferences and formatting styles without having to fill out an extensive preference form. A brief
preference form will be requested, and many times we may utilize the Joyful Scoping Preference Form.
In our experience, we have found varying degrees of skill level from court reporters. Based on that
information, please do not be afraid to use a scopist if you are worried about how your writing skills
will compare to others. We have seen everything from a file that needs complete transcription to a file
that hardly needs to be touched but receives the keen eye looking for those tiny details that need to be
corrected. In most situations, we will work with a challenging file until it becomes more like
transcription rather than scoping. When that is the case, the scopist will contact you right away
regarding any change in the fee arrangements.
Because scopists of Joyful Scoping Leads have a high degree of understanding and application of
grammar and punctuation, we serve court reporters to the best degree possible. In fact, we have found
that some court reporters are lacking in the area of punctuation. When we find punctuation that is used
in an incorrect manner, we communicate that to you so you are aware of it. After all, the transcript is
your work product, and we want your transcript to reflect the level of skill that will make your work
stand out above the rest.
For example:
The attorney was coming into the courtroom, he was concerned about how he would defend his client.
The example above is a comma splice. It is where a comma has been inserted between two
independent clauses. Only periods or semicolons should be used between two independent clauses.
Another good example with yes-or-no responses:
Q. Did you drive home when you left the store?
A. Yes, I drove home when I left the store. (A comma is used because the verbiage of the answer
echoes the verbiage of the question.)
Q. Did you drive home when you left the store?
A. No. I walked home because my car had a flat. (A period is used because the verbiage does not
echo the verbiage of the question. Also, the question asked requires a yes-or-no response. Anything
else that the witness states is added information.)
Because the majority of scopists in the Joyful Scoping Leads are graduates of Scoping Made
Affordable (SMA), please rest assured that SMA trains and tests the scopists so that they are able to
demonstrate the skills that are expected by court reporters. The only way a scoping school can
“certify” that a student has all of the skills required in the field is by testing them with audio. Each
student is evaluated at least six different times on six different sections of 2 files; the last file is a
videotaped file. Because of the increased degree of training they receive in working through practice
files and receiving feedback on their work, the recent graduates have exceeded the work currently
found in the field of other new graduates.
The scopist begins by editing the file from the beginning. Listening to the audio file is one of the skills
that needs to be developed in order to catch the tiny verbal interruptions people say to each other in
everyday conversation. They are trained to catch when the speaker trails off and later adds
information or just leaving a comment suspended requiring an ellipsis. Because videotaped files are
more often used with high profile or expert witness cases, a higher level of skill is required.
Although certification is not a requirement in the field, SMA feels that editing while listening to the
audio needs to be mastered in order to receive the “certificate of completion.” Upon receiving this
certificate, graduates are then qualified to work with the Joyful Scoping Leads team of scopists. If a
scopist wants to join the team and was not trained by SMA, they are required to scope a videotaped
file which is evaluated in order to be a part of the team.
Court reporters who have used Joyful Scoping Leads’ scopists have been pleasantly surprised by the
elevated skill level demonstrated in the scoped transcript work they receive upon completion that reflect
the high standards they desire.
Joyful Scoping Leads is really excited about the partnerships it has made with several court reporters in
the U.S. and internationally.
A scopist is an individual who is professionally trained with the computer-assisted transcription (CAT)
program to edit court transcripts. They take the rough version of a court reporter’s translated file and
edit it for all aspects of punctuation, context, readability and formatting. This includes researching all
proper nouns for accuracy. The skill of reading stenographic notes is important so the scopist can add
any untranslated notes into the CAT dictionary and apply those to the entire document. This insures
that the document has the least number of untranslates to work with.
When the “scoped” file is returned to the court reporter, the file is not expected to be in its final form.
It is expected that the file will have a final proofing applied to it before submission of the final edited
product by the court reporter.
As scopists, our goal is two-fold:
First, we always want to make you, the court reporter, look the best you can in the near-final view of
your transcript. Many court reporters understand the importance of two sets of eyes reviewing and
editing the document before it is turned in as the final product.
Second, we think communication in this relationship is very important. This begins with the email
communication to you confirming receipt of the file which is followed by communication every 24
hours regarding the status of the project.
We like to receive a sample of your completed work in the CAT program because it provides us with a
lot of preferences and formatting styles without having to fill out an extensive preference form. A brief
preference form will be requested, and many times we may utilize the Joyful Scoping Preference Form.
In our experience, we have found varying degrees of skill level from court reporters. Based on that
information, please do not be afraid to use a scopist if you are worried about how your writing skills
will compare to others. We have seen everything from a file that needs complete transcription to a file
that hardly needs to be touched but receives the keen eye looking for those tiny details that need to be
corrected. In most situations, we will work with a challenging file until it becomes more like
transcription rather than scoping. When that is the case, the scopist will contact you right away
regarding any change in the fee arrangements.
Because scopists of Joyful Scoping Leads have a high degree of understanding and application of
grammar and punctuation, we serve court reporters to the best degree possible. In fact, we have found
that some court reporters are lacking in the area of punctuation. When we find punctuation that is used
in an incorrect manner, we communicate that to you so you are aware of it. After all, the transcript is
your work product, and we want your transcript to reflect the level of skill that will make your work
stand out above the rest.
For example:
The attorney was coming into the courtroom, he was concerned about how he would defend his client.
The example above is a comma splice. It is where a comma has been inserted between two
independent clauses. Only periods or semicolons should be used between two independent clauses.
Another good example with yes-or-no responses:
Q. Did you drive home when you left the store?
A. Yes, I drove home when I left the store. (A comma is used because the verbiage of the answer
echoes the verbiage of the question.)
Q. Did you drive home when you left the store?
A. No. I walked home because my car had a flat. (A period is used because the verbiage does not
echo the verbiage of the question. Also, the question asked requires a yes-or-no response. Anything
else that the witness states is added information.)
Because the majority of scopists in the Joyful Scoping Leads are graduates of Scoping Made
Affordable (SMA), please rest assured that SMA trains and tests the scopists so that they are able to
demonstrate the skills that are expected by court reporters. The only way a scoping school can
“certify” that a student has all of the skills required in the field is by testing them with audio. Each
student is evaluated at least six different times on six different sections of 2 files; the last file is a
videotaped file. Because of the increased degree of training they receive in working through practice
files and receiving feedback on their work, the recent graduates have exceeded the work currently
found in the field of other new graduates.
The scopist begins by editing the file from the beginning. Listening to the audio file is one of the skills
that needs to be developed in order to catch the tiny verbal interruptions people say to each other in
everyday conversation. They are trained to catch when the speaker trails off and later adds
information or just leaving a comment suspended requiring an ellipsis. Because videotaped files are
more often used with high profile or expert witness cases, a higher level of skill is required.
Although certification is not a requirement in the field, SMA feels that editing while listening to the
audio needs to be mastered in order to receive the “certificate of completion.” Upon receiving this
certificate, graduates are then qualified to work with the Joyful Scoping Leads team of scopists. If a
scopist wants to join the team and was not trained by SMA, they are required to scope a videotaped
file which is evaluated in order to be a part of the team.
Court reporters who have used Joyful Scoping Leads’ scopists have been pleasantly surprised by the
elevated skill level demonstrated in the scoped transcript work they receive upon completion that reflect
the high standards they desire.
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| Court Reporter and Scopist Testimonials Thanks so much for being so professional....very refreshing! :) Feel free to give my e-mail address or phone number to potential clients for references....I will give you a good one! Jodi Cardenas, CSR, RPR, CPE Austin, TX Oct. 28, 2011 After thanking Mary Alyce for a recent referral, she replied with the following: You're welcome. I will send anyone to you because I know you screen those you recommend. Mary Alyce Gaskin, Case CATalyst Scopist, 5/4/11 |
| Joyful Scoping/Joyful Leads' Rates Price/Page Price/Page (Standard) (Expert/doctor/ dense/videotape) For no audio and/or spot-checking, *normal turnaround time. $ .90 $1.00 For Audiosync work with *normal turnaround time. $1.10 $1.20 For digital audio outside of the CAT program, *normal TAT. $1.20 $1.40 *Normal turnaround time is 3 - 5 days For expedite with a 1 – 3 day turnaround $1.60 $1.70 $1.70 per page for videotape expedites. For daily work that is due within 12 – 24 hours, $2.00 $2.20 $2.20 per page for videotape dailies. All invoices will be billed and paid to Devon Roberts. She will pay scopists and/or proofreaders accordingly. Satisfaction guaranteed. |
Testimonials below |
| Click here to request a scopist or a proofreader. Click here to go to the instructions on how to send files through the Internet. |
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