How To Become A Freelance Court Reporter: What It Is and Career Path

What is a freelance court reporter and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a freelance court reporter. For example, did you know that they make an average of $30.43 an hour? That's $63,304 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 7% and produce 1,100 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreFreelance Court ReporterUS Average

Salary

4.9

Avg. Salary $63,304

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.7

Growth rate 7%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

1.8

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.23%

Asian 1.40%

Black or African American 3.27%

Hispanic or Latino 5.61%

Unknown 4.44%

White 85.05%

Gender

female 89.91%

male 10.09%

Age - 55

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 55

Stress level

5.7

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.2

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

5.9

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a freelance court reporter

Explore freelance court reporter education requirements

Most common freelance court reporter degrees

Associate

60.3 %

Bachelor's

19.8 %

Diploma

6.9 %

Start to develop specific freelance court reporter skills

Skills	Percentages
Transcription	19.66%
Proofread	11.44%
Legal Proceedings	8.29%
Court Trials	7.38%
Court Proceedings	6.86%

Complete relevant freelance court reporter training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New freelance court reporters learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a freelance court reporter based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real freelance court reporter resumes.

Research freelance court reporter duties and responsibilities

Edit and correct transcripts using computer-aid transcription software.
Provide deposition recording and medical/legal transcription services to various medical malpractice attorneys in the Boston area.
Transcribe sworn testimony in deposition, courtroom, arbitration and grievance proceedings.
Record depositions covering employment, medical, pharmaceutical, environmental, and business litigation matters.

Prepare your freelance court reporter resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your freelance court reporter resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a freelance court reporter resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable freelance court reporter resume templates

Build a professional freelance court reporter resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your freelance court reporter resume.