Rule 6.2 - Requirement of Certification or Registration(a) A person may not engage in shorthand reporting in this State or be appointed as an official court reporter or deputy court reporter unless that person is certified as a shorthand reporter or a provisional court reporter by the Supreme Court of Texas. (1) A certification must be for one or more of the following methods of shorthand reporting: (D) any other method of shorthand reporting authorized by the Supreme Court.(2) A person may not assume or use the title or designation "court recorder," "court reporter," or "shorthand reporter," or any abbreviation, title, designation, words, letters, sign, card, or device tending to indicate that the person is a court reporter or shorthand reporter, unless the person is certified as a shorthand reporter or a provisional court reporter by the Supreme Court of Texas. Nothing in this rule must be construed to either sanction or prohibit the use of electronic court recording equipment operated by a noncertified court reporter pursuant and according to rules adopted or approved by the Supreme Court of Texas.(b) A court reporting firm and its affiliate offices must register with the Commission. Unless a firm and its affiliate offices are registered with the Commission, the firm must not: (1) use the title or designation "court recording firm," "court reporting firm," or "shorthand reporting firm" or any abbreviation, title, designation, words, letters, sign, card, or device tending to indicate that the firm is a court reporting firm or shorthand reporting firm; or (2) offer services as a court reporting firm or shorthand reporting firm.(c) These rules do not apply to: (1) a party to the litigation involved, the party's attorney, or a full-time employee of either; or(2) court reporting services performed outside of this State by a shorthand reporter who is not certified in this State for use in a court proceeding in this State, provided that the work resulting from those services is produced and billed wholly outside of this State.(d) Subject to the requirements of Rule 6.4(d) and (e), nothing in these rules should be construed to prohibit the employment of a noncertified shorthand reporter until a certified shorthand reporter is available in the judicial district where services of a shorthand reporter are desired.(e) To qualify for certification, a person must:(1) satisfy the requirements of Section 3.0 of these rules;(2) pass an examination as required by the Commission in one or more of the methods of shorthand reporting authorized by Rule 6.2(a)(l); and(3) be a high school graduate or possess the GED equivalent.(f) To take an examination, an applicant for certification must file the required forms and pay the required fees according to the deadlines established by the Commission.(g) Each examination will be given in two parts to be designated Part A and Part B. (1) Part A component. (A) Part A will be composed of five minutes of two-voice dictation of questions and answers given at 225 words per minute, five minutes of dictation of a jury charge given at 200 words per minute, and five minutes of dictation of selected literary material given at 180 words per minute.(B) Each applicant must personally take down the test and must reduce the takedown to writing.(C) The minimum passing grade on each section of Part A is 95% accuracy. An error will be charged for: (iii) each added word not dictated;(iv) each contraction where read as two words;(v) two words where read as a contraction;(vi) each misplaced word;(vii) each misplaced period that materially alters the sense of a group of words or a sentence;(viii) each misspelled word;(ix) each plural or singular if the opposite was dictated; and(D) Applicants may use a dictionary during Part A.(E) Applicants will be allowed three hours to complete the transcription of Part A of the test. If time permits, an applicant may review his or her transcript but may use only the original takedown from which the transcript was prepared to review the transcript.(2) Part B component. (A) Part B of the test must consist of objective questions touching on elementary aspects of court reporting, spelling, and grammar and Texas rules and procedure.(B) Applicants may not use a dictionary during Part B.(C) The minimum passing grade on Part B is 75%.(3) Notwithstanding Rule 3.10(e), an applicant who passes Part A or Part B of the examination but fails the other part will not be required to be reexamined on the part that the applicant passed.(h) An applicant who fails an examination may request that the examination be regraded by sending a written request to the Commission office within 30 days of the date of notice that the applicant has failed the examination. If the examination is regraded, the Commission will inform the applicant of the results of the regrading. Upon receipt of the regrading results, the applicant may request a personal review of the examination with a member of the advisory board. The request for a personal review must be in writing and filed within 30 days of the notice of regrading results. (i) The Commission must certify to the Supreme Court of Texas the names of applicants who have completed all prerequisites for certification and are determined on examination to be qualified in professional shorthand reporting. In its certification, the Commission must specify the method or methods of reporting used by each successful applicant in taking the examination.(j) A person certified under Chapter 52 of the Government Code prior to September 1, 1983, may retain a general certification authorizing the person to use any method of shorthand reporting authorized in Rule 6.2(a)(1), provided that the person keeps the certification in continuous effect.(k) To register, a court reporting firm or affiliate office must pay all required fees and register on a form provided by the Commission. The registration form must state whether any officers, directors, or managerial employees of the firm or affiliate office have been finally convicted of a felony or misdemeanor other than a minor traffic offense or juvenile offense.(l) The Commission may: (1) refuse to certify to the Supreme Court an applicant who was finally convicted of an offense that directly relates to the duties and responsibilities of a certified court reporter as determined using the factors listed in Rule 3.5; or(2) refuse to register a court reporting firm or affiliate office if an officer, director, or managerial employee of the firm or affiliate office was finally convicted of a felony or misdemeanor that directly relates to providing court reporting services as determined using the factors listed in Rule 3.5.Tex. R. Judi. Cert. Commi. 6.2
Amended effective 4/12/2018 immediately; amended effective 6/16/2020 immediately; amended effective 11/17/2023.