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4.3. Standards and quality of transcript


Suitability of transcript formats for text retrieval


Transcript needs to be provided in a format which makes it suitable for text
retrieval. There needs to be consistency in such matters as how particular
types of examination are referred to. There also needs to be formatting which
preserves the page numbering of the paper transcript, so that text retrieved
electronically may be referred to by its page number in the official
transcript (which is still the paper copy!). Staudt and Keane (1992) outline
some of the difficulties that various court reporting conventions have caused
with transcript retrieval programs in the USA and Canada (8:14 - 8:19).

The South Australian Department found that, in order to develop its litigation
support component, LIS, it needed to develop more strict rules for consistent
references in transcript. The users of the transcript were not consulted
formally. In Western Australia the legal profession was represented on a
committee to determine the most appropriate formats for provision of
transcript (civil and criminal), and was surveyed as to its needs. As a result
the court now provides transcript in five common word processing formats.

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