Session 1

Title: How to Educate Attorneys   2hrs (120 Min)

Presenter: Anita Paul Johnson, CSR-CCR-CRR-CRI-CPE-CCP-CBC-CSP

In this 2-hour interactive, fun presentation, Anita shares her wisdom from decades of dealing with attorneys and not going crazy.

Learning Objectives:

To offer essential strategies to court reporters how to effectively interact with attorneys who are non-cooperative, how to interrupt often enough and not to overdo it, and how to build a strategic alliance to be most effective. Learn what is acceptable interrupting versus irritating (attorneys asking that that court reporter not return). This is an interactive presentation wherein participants contribute their scenarios, ask questions, and enjoy feedback from the participants. Building successful relationships is vital.

Specific Topics:

• How to interrupt effectively when attorneys are not record-conscious and of course, you are
• How to gain control of superfast talkers, people who mumble, people with difficult foreign accents
• Create a checklist to determine what line items need to be addressed
• Key points for attorneys to educate their witnesses and/or paralegals
• 3 Essential Tips for them to look good in front of a jury and a judge
• What their legal opponents would really like that makes our lives difficult and how they should avoid it
• What is expected of the court reporter’s role

Learning Outcomes

Court reporters will learn proven successful techniques to either encourage cooperation with attorneys or how to handle themselves when attorneys choose not to cooperate. Court reporters can learn to enjoy their workday instead of being frustrated over inconsiderate behavior.

Session 2

Title: Personal Power    2hrs (120 Min)

Presenter: Anita Paul Johnson, CSR-CCR-CRR-CRI-CPE-CCP-CBC-CSP

In this 2-hour seminar, Anita shows how to work at your peak and maintain emotional control over your life.

Learning Objectives:

  To review and perfect rules of punctuation, “word pairs” – which word is correct, hyphens, and how to use quotes in transcripts. Learning takes place by court reporters working with a partner, working in small groups, and participating in fun tests.

Specific Topics:

• Identifying the power of energy and emotions, including High positive energy, Low positive energy, Low negative energy, High negative energy, and the role each plays in mastering emotions
• Techniques for Visualizations to minimize fear in different situations

Learning Outcomes

Court reporters will learn proven successful techniques applied by Olympic champions, CEOs, and other highly successful people in stress situations. These techniques will follow in all aspects of their life by creating excellent peak performance when it counts. They will learn emotional control when it is vital.

Biography:

Anita Paul Johnson CSR-CCR-CRR-CRI-CPE-CCP-CBC-CSP

Anita has been a certified court reporter since 1974.   She served as an official in the Los Angeles municipal and superior courts for over 17 years, became a freelancer in 1992, and during her 17 years as an official taught court reporting at night school for about 12 years. In 1991, she was instrumental in creating the first complete CIC (computer integrated courtroom) in the state of California, including video synchronization.  During that time Anita developed her passion for Realtime and quality Realtime skills as she reported back-to-back Realtime dailies with her partner for over a year.

In 1992, Anita Paul Realtime Seminars and Workshops were formed wherein Anita provides inspirational and content-driven Realtime workshops, seminars, keynotes, peak performance strategies, and attorney presentations.

Session 3

Title: Fun With Spelling And Vocabulary    2hrs (120 Min)

Presenter: Pam Coder and Jeff Justice

Who knew that spelling and vocabulary could be this much fun?

Learning Objectives:

To review and develop accuracy on these essential skills for court reporters. Included in this seminar are the latest memory techniques for instant recall of unfamiliar words, and the role English skills bring to transcript preparation. True, we don’t say the words we record, but we spell and punctuate them and we must create the correct words for the transcript. This is an interactive, fun presentation with lots of group participation.

Specific Topics:

•Correct meaning of confusing words.

•How to remember correct spelling for commonly misspelled words.

•New words added to the dictionary.

Learning Outcomes

Court reporters will learn ideal thought processes and successful techniques applied by our greatest court reporters in the country. They will also learn the correct spelling of commonly misspelled words and the correct meaning of many confusing words.

Session 4 

Title: Ethics By Choice Or By Chance 2.5 hours (150 Min)

Presenter: Pam Gwin Coder

Course Objective:

Working with reporters to identify tricky ethical situations in various settings we encounter every day in the workplace and how to effectively handle said situations immediately, effectively, professionally, humorously, and ethically for the benefit of the reporter as well as the clients.

Special format:  Group participation and discussion.

Specific topics:

Pam discusses changes in the Ethics rules for NCRA as well as some other states like Texas and Arizona. She also takes the class through what to do ethically in certain situations dealing with attorneys and clients.

Biography

Pam Gwen Coder

Pam Gwin Coder is a dedicated freelance reporter in Texas, and has reported since 1994.  She is a realtime writer, technology instructor, software instructor, and frequent guest speaker.  She has been mentoring students from various schools since 2003.  Pam opened her own school, “RACR,” The Realtime Academy of Court Reporting in October of 2012.  Pam is a member of TCRA as well as NCRA.  She is speaking at the NCRA convention for the first time this year.  Her first book, Transitioning from Student to Professional Court Reporter, was first published in 2009.  She is currently working on her second book, The Mystery of Beginning and Ending Pages – Solved!

Session 5

Title: From Stressed To Best 1.5 hrs (90 Min)

Presenter: Jeff Justice

Learning Outcomes:

To show court reporters how to take control of situations, specific to court reporting, cause them stress so they can be at their best. Whether their stress comes from dealing with technology, lawyers, judges, or fellow court reporters, attendees will learn proven ways to reduce and reframe negative situations.

Specific Seminar topics:

• From self-stressed to self-assured
• You first: We often forget to take care of ourselves which prevents us from functioning at our best.
• Where your stress originates: Most stress starts with your reaction to outside situations such as deadlines 
and expectations.
• Taking control of how you react instead of stress taking control of you

Learning Outcomes:

Court reporters will learn how to identify the things and situations which are causing them stress, and how to take control of them so they can excel. These include dealing with technology, lawyers, judges, deadlines, scheduling, family, clients, and other areas specific to court reporting which will come up during group discussion.