Amended in Assembly April 10, 2013

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 788

Introduced by Assembly Member Wagner

February 21, 2013

An act to amend Section 69954 begin delete of end delete begin insert of, and to add Section 69954.5 to, end insert the Government Code, relating to court transcripts.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 788, as amended, Wagner. Court transcripts.

Existing law begin insert authorizes a superior court to appoint official reporters and prescribes the fees for their services. Existing law end insert requires that transcripts prepared by a reporter using computer assistance and delivered on a medium other than paper be compensated at the same rate set for paper transcripts, except as specified. Existing law establishes certain fees for second copies of transcripts, as specified, including transcripts in computer-readable format.

Existing law authorizes a court, party, or person who has purchased a transcript to reproduce a copy or portion thereof as an exhibit, pursuant to court order or rule, or for internal use, without paying a further fee to the reporter, but prohibits otherwise providing or selling a copy or copies to any other party or person.

This bill would limit the reproduction provisions described above to computer-readable transcripts.

begin insert This bill would additionally authorize, in the case of transcripts that are not computer-readable, the purchaser of a transcript to reproduce the transcript for any purpose reasonably related to the conduct or pursuit of the case or in response to a court order, rule, statute, or subpoena without paying a further fee to the reporter. The bill would also authorize, without paying a further fee to the reporter, the purchaser of a transcript, other than a computer-readable transcript, to provide a copy of the transcript to any other party to the litigation at a cost not exceeding the actual copying costs. end insert

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 69954 of the Government Code is
amended to read:

69954.  

(a) Transcripts prepared by a reporter using computer
assistance and delivered on a medium other than paper shall be
compensated at the same rate set for paper transcripts, except the
reporter may also charge an additional fee not to exceed the cost
of the medium or any copies thereof.

(b) The fee for a second copy of a transcript on appeal in
computer-readable format ordered by or on behalf of a requesting
party within 120 days of the filing or delivery of the original
transcript shall be compensated at one-third the rate set forth for
a second copy of a transcript as provided in Section 69950. A
reporter may also charge an additional fee not to exceed the cost
of the medium or any copies thereof.

(c) The fee for a computer-readable transcript shall be paid by
the requesting court, party, or person, unless the computer-readable
transcript is requested by a party in lieu of a paper transcript
required to be delivered to that party by the rules of court. In that
event, the fee shall be chargeable as statute or rule provides for
the paper transcript.

(d) Any court, party, or person who has purchased a
computer-readable transcript may, without paying a further fee to
the reporter, reproduce a copy or portion thereof as an exhibit
pursuant to court order or rule, or for internal use, but shall not
otherwise provide or sell a copy or copies to any other party or
person.

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 69954.5 is added to the end insert begin insert Government Code end insert begin insert , to
read: end insert

begin insert

begin insert 69954.5. end insert   

Except as provided in subdivision (d) of Section
69954, any court, party, or person who has purchased a transcript
may, without paying a further fee to the reporter, reproduce one
or more copies or portions of the transcript for any purpose
reasonably related to the conduct or pursuit of the case, for internal
use, or in response to court order, rule, statute, or subpoena. The
purchaser of a transcript, other than a computer-readable
transcript, may, without paying a further fee to the reporter,
provide a copy to any other party to the litigation at a cost not to
exceed the actual copying costs incurred in making the copy for
the other party, but shall not otherwise provide or sell a copy or
copies to another party or person.

end insert