1 Answer

Definition: Scopists practice a very specialize form of data entry for court reporters. Scopists review, edit and proofread court transcripts produced by a court reporter, essentially converting the machine shorthand used by court reporters into a clean transcript. While the court reporter’s software will convert many of his or her abbreviations, the scopist cleans up anything that is unclear, checks the spelling of proper names and technical terms and listens to the recordings to clarify anything necessary.
While a court reporter is an on-site job, scopists can work from home or in an office. Scopists must have a strong knowledge of grammar, punctuation, familiarity with legal and medical terms, typing speeds of around 120 wpm, good computer skills, ability to work dictation machines and an understanding of how court reporter’s software works. To gain these skills most scopists take specialized courses. However, there is no one standardize course for all scopists.