I made a typical rookie move, and I have been traveling for years.  Both for work and privately.  While on depositions in Barcelona, Spain, we had an off day, and decided to do some touristy things and visit the city.  Since our hotel was right on the beach, we decided to take the subway into the city center.  We bought our tickets, found the correct platform, and were on our way.  While going through the turnstiles, I noticed this man attempting to cut in front of me right as I was inserting my ticket into the machine.  Of course, this kind of caught me off guard ..read more

I have been a court reporter for over four decades. I estimate that I have done about 7,500 oral depositions in my career. I have a regular set of clients who ask for me and I would like to think that I have served them well.  There are times when I wonder why they ask for me especially when handling high profile and sensitive cases. My wife assures me that it is not because of my charm or good looks, so it must be something else. At the end of the day, I believe I am a good court reporter. What makes a good reporter? Let me attempt to quantify what skills and traits a good reporter shoul ..read more

How many times have you been in a deposition where there was an armed guard, carrying an Uzi, standing in the doorway?  Let me set the scene.  A law firm hired my company to provide a Court Reporter, a Videographer & an Interpreter to take testimony in a different country, i.e., not the US.  The parties had to petition the World Court in The Hague, Netherlands to allow the deposition of a witness, not employed by either side of the lawsuit, and living in another country, to be taken.  It was agreed that the deposition would take place in the Judge’s Chambers at the Cour ..read more

How many times have you been in a deposition where there was an armed guard, carrying an Uzi, standing in the doorway?  Let me set the scene.  A law firm hired my company to provide a Court Reporter, a Videographer & an Interpreter to take testimony in a different country, i.e., not the US.  The parties had to petition the World Court in The Hague, Netherlands to allow the deposition of a witness, not employed by either side of the lawsuit, and living in another country, to be taken.  It was agreed that the deposition would take place in the Judge’s Chambers at the Cour ..read more

I have been a court reporter for over four decades. I estimate that I have done about 7,500 oral depositions in my career. I have a regular set of clients who ask for me and I would like to think that I have served them well.  There are times when I wonder why they ask for me especially when handling high profile and sensitive cases. My wife assures me that it is not because of my charm or good looks, so it must be something else. At the end of the day, I believe I am a good court reporter. What makes a good reporter? Let me attempt to quantify what skills and traits a good reporter shoul ..read more

I made a typical rookie move, and I have been traveling for years.  Both for work and privately.  While on depositions in Barcelona, Spain, we had an off day, and decided to do some touristy things and visit the city.  Since our hotel was right on the beach, we decided to take the subway into the city center.  We bought our tickets, found the correct platform, and were on our way.  While going through the turnstiles, I noticed this man attempting to cut in front of me right as I was inserting my ticket into the machine.  Of course, this kind of caught me off guard ..read more

9/11…one day in history that changed our lives forever. On that infamous day I was on a short-lived deposition in Dallas, Texas I had traveled by car early that morning from Houston, listening to my music cd’s, cut off from the outside world when I received a call from my wife telling me that a plane had flown into one of the towers of the world trade center.  First thought was a pilot in a small aircraft had fallen asleep or had a heart attack. In that same conversation as my wife and I were talking, the news reported another plane had flown into the other tower…this time confirming that ..read more

Dramatic photo of the American Flag. Like most veterans after the Vietnam war, I was searching for a career and a livelihood. I was 24, inexperienced, naïve and apprehensive. There was no recipe that gave me the ingredients to a secure and comfortable life. I was fortunate that my experience in the war did not deter my enthusiasm to join the real world or excel at a profession. One day, I saw a commercial that caught my eye. It was one of those late night ads that attracted unemployed people to invest in real estate or join a pyramid scheme. The commercial featured an attractive lady getting i ..read more