Monday 3 August 2020

Want to be Legal Transcriber? Hone these 5 skills to be an expert Legal Transcriber

Brush up these 5 skills to be an expert Legal Transcriber
Legal transcriber, legal transcription services

No doubt the role of a legal transcriber is too crucial in today's society. The process of legal transcription online involves preparing the legal documents from the recordings of court hearings. Not only this, but a legal transcriptionist also transcribes the dictated legal information of federal agencies, insurance companies, and many others. Proper transcription skill is a prerequisite for being a legal transcriber. But an added knowledge of transcription software will help in managing your transcription work. Without these two, will not be easy to legal transcribe and produce accurate files for the attorneys, public prosecutors, etc.

Do you want to know the five primary skills that can help you to become a good legal transcriber? If yes, thisblog is perfect for youto start.

1.      Should Have Good Listening Skills

Of course, hearing is essential to transcribe the dictated document into a written one. Just hearing and typing is not enough to be an excellent legal transcriber. Listening to each word carefully is anessential skill in transcription. As a transcriber of legal transcription services may come across:

●       Background noise

●       Distort speech

●       Low-voiced or Quiet Speakers

●       Different speech rate

●       More speakers speaking at a time

●       Different accents and so on.

Being able to comprehend the context to figure out the unclear words is too important. For example, you being a transcriptionist, transcribing a legal document for a healthcare lawyer. Due to the background noise or low voice of the speaker, you heard $14 instead of $40 while listening to the audio and transcribe precisely that. This will decrease your accuracy of transcribing the document. Inaccuracy in transcription may even create a wrong impression as a legal transcriptionist. Instead, invest in a good pair of headphones having noise cancellation features. Such headphones can help you in a long way in transcribing files with audio distortion and low dictations.

2.      Strong Knowledge on Legal Terminologies

Having a strong knowledge of legal terminologies is another vital skill forbeing a legal transcriber. Suppose you are listening to the audio recording with full concentration, but still can't make the words that are being said by the speaker. You will face difficulty in transcribing it and will end up making mistakes in your file. Many terms are generally used in legal specialities. For example, Community Rating, Pre-existing Conditions are the terminologies of health care insurance. 

Many health care lawyers used these terms while speaking. If you are transcribing any documents related to intellectual property law, then you will come across these words like copy-write ownershipandtrademark infringement. Merely knowing about the terminologies will not do. You should also know how to apply theseterms in an accurate context. Strong knowledge of legal terminologies will help you transcribe the document with high accuracy.

3.      Excellent Typing Skills

Excellent typing skills with high accuracy is the necessary skill required for being hired in a legal transcription company. It is quite simple, the quicker you type, the more money you earn as almost all the legal transcribers are generally paid based on per pages. If you have the capability of typing 20 pages within an hour, then you will earn a considerable sum of money in comparison to 10 pages/hour.

Are you thinking about how to increase your typing speed? You only have to practice listening and typing without looking at your keyword. The less you pause the audio to type, the more time you save. But this does not mean you will type the legal document inaccurately. Listen properly to the given digital audio files and type it in lesser time. This will gradually help you in increasing your productivity.

4.      Know About Transcription Software

Legal transcribers generally transcribe a variety of files and documents like:

●       Legal letters

●       Memorandums

●       Deposition Statements

●       Briefs and many more

To compete, using good transcription software is, no doubt a necessity to increase efficiency. Legal transcription services are using transcription software to make transcription easier and faster. This software provides tools that make listening digital audio files with the best sound quality. AI-enabled software like Verbit helps in transcribing court transcripts without compromising accuracy and TAT. Nuance Dragon Legal Individualv15 is another software that allows in transcribing the documents within a few minutes with high accuracy. If you want to make the best use of this transcription software, then you should learn how to use for transcribing legal documents.

5.      Excellent Proofreading Skills

The legal documents need to be error-free (spelling errors, grammatical errors, etc.). For example, if you are transcribing a report for the court, then even a minute error is usually not appreciated. A small spelling error like men to man can make a huge difference in legal documents. Generally, all legal transcribers have to maintain 99% accuracy in their transcribed records. So, if you want to be a good legal transcriber, then work on your proofreading skills. Proofreading the transcript will help in weeding out the errors. This will help in increasing the accuracy and work efficiency.

Final Lines

In a nutshell, these are the skills that every legal transcriber should have. An added knowledge in legal terminologies will make this job simpler. Just work on the basics and hone your skills in transcribing varieties of legal documents. Investing in software and good headphone will make your work easier and faster. In the long-run, this will also give a good ROI and increase productivity.


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