By Mike Murray and Tony Donofrio
Reprinted with the permission of Mike Murray, Director of Client Solutions, and Law.com. This article was originally published in April 2024.
Livingston, New Jersey – March 13, 2024 – Veritext Legal Solutions, the leader in court reporting services and innovative litigation support solutions, today announces the release of Smart Summary, an AI-generated and editable draft summarization of the official proceeding transcript.
Smart Summary is delivered alongside the certified transcript and provides legal teams with efficiency when it comes to case strategy and the transcript summarization process. With Smart Summary, the legal team has access to a draft page-line summary in an editable format to easily mark up text and highlight key testimony.
Benefits of Smart Summary include:
“Smart Summary uses the power of AI to give legal teams a head start on producing their transcript summaries. It’s delivered alongside the certified transcript, formatted in a page-line style and can be easily modified,” states Mike Murray, director of technical and creative solutions at Veritext. “The best part is that Smart Summary is created with the same data security standards that Veritext is known for – which means that even though it’s AI-generated content, legal teams don’t have to worry about their confidential information being shared or showing up somewhere public.”
Smart Summary will be returned with all transcripts delivered before May 1 at no additional cost. To learn more about Smart Summary, visit www.veritext.com/smartsummary/.
Be sure to join the upcoming MyVeritext 3.0 Tours and discover how to schedule with ease, connect to remote sessions and find files fast while navigating the all new interface of our complimentary web portal.
We have a selection of dates available in July and August. You can register here!
Looking for new career ideas? We took a moment to ask Toronto-based digital reporter, Elizabeth Pilbrow about her experience as a ‘DR’ with Veritext. Click below to read the whole article.
We are pleased to rebroadcast this webinar for those who missed it in December. Join us on February 9 at 12:00 p.m. PT for a FREE one-hour webinar.
This informative webinar will give you the opportunity to earn one hour of CPD credits and learn about the tools and practices available to you when taking on a complex case in today’s technology-filled world.
Courts, lawyers and mediators have been using digital tools to enhance the entire legal system from discovery all the way through to hearings and trials. The ability to expand access to court proceedings that were once hampered by distance or scale is now encouraging more people to embrace a wider use of technology across the legal industry. Our team is here to help you navigate the process of adopting this innovative technology.
This one-hour webinar will take you through the key areas of managing a large or complex case with the latest in legal technology. The webinar will take a dive into the tools and services available for managing document production and examinations for discovery as well as other e-solutions for complex proceedings.
This includes the following:
Space is limited, so please register here to secure your spot.
“Going paperless” in the legal world has been a challenge that many of us have been facing head on for many years now. In an industry that has been nearly built on documents, files and bankers boxes, it can be a terrifying endeavour.
Clearly the adaptation of virtual and digital technology into the legal justice system is not based on jumping on the latest bandwagon and grabbing the shiny new toy. In fact we already have a working model here in BC: the Civil Resolution Tribunal combines proven technology with flexibility and case management to resolve small-value property and land disputes. Applicants can avoid a pricey trip to the supreme court, where legal costs could easily end up higher than the original sums in dispute.
The main goal is access to justice for all people, no matter where they are or what their circumstances are. Our commitment is to develop and provide tech that connects, and we want the use of technology to enhance rather than hinder people’s experiences.
At the heart of all legal proceedings is the record — official and supportive documentation in all forms. For many the idea of going paperless seems to contravene everything that we envision when we think about the world of law and immediately picture stacks of documents and piles of bankers boxes filled with files. How do we truly manage all of that digitally?
Going paperless needs to be cost-effective, easily managed and accessible to all involved. With advanced planning and cooperation between counsel and the court, paperless trials will not only save time but also significantly reduce legal fees, eliminate the costs of reproducing and handling paper, streamline the presentation of evidence and lead to better trial outcomes.
E-discoveries and transcript bundles are here, and we can help.
Digital technology can allow the sharing of court information (such as disclosures and discovery data) between participants effectively and with privacy and security requirements in place.
Our transcript bundles allow you to unlock the power of your cross-examination by placing both the oral testimony and the documents you put to the witness right at your fingertips, directly where they are referenced in the transcript. Judges love the convenience of reviewing witness testimony, trial exhibits, closing argument and case law with the click of a hyperlink, particularly since our bundles are fully searchable, with excerpts from the proceedings easily copied/pasted directly into the judge’s reasons for judgment.
You can see a sample of a transcript bundle here.
“We remain in an era of threat, with risks of barely functioning court systems, greatly reduced access to justice, and, in turn, a potential weakening of the rule of law. We are also in an era of opportunity — the chance to build boldly on the shift of attitude and on demonstrable recent successes with technology, and to put in place improved, sustainable court services that are much more accessible than today’s.”
— Richard Susskind, “The Future of Courts”
Going paperless is not just part of the new digital court system; it can also better accommodate remote working arrangements in your law offices while keeping documents more organized and secure. By going paperless, you can also make a positive environmental impact by leading the change towards protecting the environment.
Contact us today to learn more.
Join us on December 22 at 12:00 p.m. PT for a FREE one-hour webinar hosted by us, Reportex, a Veritext Company.
We are very pleased to present you with an opportunity to earn one hour of CPD credits before the year wraps up and to learn about the tools and practices available to you when taking on a complex case.
Courts, lawyers and mediators have been using digital tools to enhance the entire legal system from discovery all the way through to hearings and trials. The ability to expand access to court proceedings that were once hampered by distance or scale is now encouraging more people to embrace a wider use of technology across the legal industry. Our team is here to help you navigate the process of adopting this innovative technology.
This one-hour webinar will take you through the key areas of managing a large or complex case with the latest in legal technology. We will take a dive into the tools and services available for managing document production and examinations for discovery as well as other e‑solutions for complex proceedings.
This includes:
Space is limited, so please register here to secure your spot.
The genie is not going back into the bottle — virtual and hybrid technology is here to stay in our legal and court systems.
And that is just fine.
There are many reasons why the integration of virtual technology is a positive addition to the arsenal of tools required for legal services inside and outside of the courtroom, on many levels. Health and safety is an obvious benefit, and thanks to COVID-19 we have also seen how effective videoconferencing technology has been in aiding access to justice by maintaining fair and legal representation for all despite the pandemic.
But there are many other reasons why this technology belongs here.
Virtual and hybrid options free up both time and resources for everyone, helping to streamline processes in an already-stretched justice system. We have long believed in the advantages of videoconferencing solutions, enabling numerous legal services to become more convenient and efficient for clients and lawyers alike. Clients simply do not need to travel long distances to meet with you, witnesses can be interviewed from the convenience of your own office or specific parties can take advantage of our various meeting spaces for a hybrid solution. We are here to help, guide and even facilitate. We have a myriad of options at your disposal.
Welcome to our Virtual Proceedings page.
Our virtual proceedings tools are at the heart of our e-solutions. We provide the latest technology and support services for whatever legal proceedings you need. From arbitrations and mediations to discoveries, we can connect you securely and safely to your clients.
Our Virtual Proceedings page shares the basic information and technology you need to conduct your practice virtually as well as how we can help you — from setting up your calls to including a realtime reporter or facilitating the entire process.
Find out more about how videoconferencing can enhance your legal services.
Digital tools were part of legal services across Canada and the US long before COVID-19. Courts, lawyers and mediators have been using digital tools to enhance the entire legal from discovery all the way through to hearings and actual trials. The ability to expand access to court proceedings hampered by distance or scope is now encouraging more people to embrace a wider use of technology across the legal industry.
Adopting technology into the legal world does not come without problems, and not everyone or every place has the ability to adapt to these tools. We have always been aware of this. Technology is a tool that can be made great only when wielded by the right people — and our team is made up of the right people.
We teamed up with Veritext because they too saw that the future of legal services goes far beyond booking a court reporter. They too focus on the unique needs of each member of a legal team and strive to provide access to the best technology and virtual solutions as well as the highest quality network of reporters and legal videographers, and they pride themselves on providing unmatched expertise in multi-party and complex litigations. Now we can offer our brand of e-solutions expertise to clients across Canada and the US.
We want you to be eager to adopt our e-solutions, and we are here to help you build your e-trial. Let’s look at the main things to consider when you request a quote:
The future is here, and the solution to providing fair and equal access to justice for all lies in your ability to welcome new technology and new formats like e-trials.
The technology required to run a successful e-trial is not large or distracting in a courtroom setting. The basic e-trial equipment comprises a laptop, viewing monitors, a presenter workstation and additional laptops for both the witnesses and the clerk. Additional hardware may include the following:
We also provide a technician to manage the technology throughout the proceedings.
Talk to us today to learn more about what we can do for you or take our quiz to get you started!
The call to modernize the court system to ensure fair and speedier resolutions predated COVID, though the pandemic certainly accelerated the entrance of technology into the courtroom. Many trials across Canada and the US have already been moving towards a paperless or near-paperless and virtual manner.
We were ready. We have always known that adaptation of new and innovative technology would be at the core of ensuring access to justice for all Canadians. Investing in growing our technical knowledge and support in the legal service industry has always been at the heart of the development of Reportex and is one of the reasons why we joined with Veritext as they too have long understood the need to stay ahead of the changing needs in the legal system here in Canada and the US.
“Access to justice is a foundation of our society, and we simply had to learn, adapt and evolve. And now there’s no going back. For us at Reportex, we felt a profound sense of obligation to provide guidance, support and solutions to the legal community. Court reporting is arguably a tech industry; law is not. We see it as our role in the litigation arena to bridge tradition with technology, to reinvent not just the way we deliver our services but to go a step further and actually innovate workflow options for our clients, to shape the future of litigation in Canada. Lawyers are required to keep one foot in the past, but court reporters are not, and Reportex has been actively doing the research, making the tech investments and implementing e-solutions in discoveries, arbitrations and trials for years now.”
— Christy Pratt, RCR, RPR, CLR
The future is now: E-Trials
We have been here since the beginning. Our technicians and our complex litigation manager work with our e-solutions services to create the e-trial that fits you and your clients’ needs.
From providing independent courtroom technicians to document management and maintaining digital security, we already had the infrastructure in place. There are many things to consider when you begin to build your own e-trial:
To get you started on the road to your first e-trial, why don’t you take our fun e-trial quiz!
Visit our new e-trials page and book a free consultation to start you on your journey today.