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  Court reporters are responsible for transcribing events that occur in a legal setting. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), legal transcriptionists must be able to present the results to the media, attorneys or the general public on demand. Certain skills and qualifications are necessary for success in this field.
  
  

Education

• According to EducationPortal.com, you can start a career in legal transcription with a high school diploma and on-the job training. While additional training is not a universal requirement, the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA) has certified more than 60 programs that offer courses on such skills as computer-aided stenography and real-time reporting.
  
  

Licensing and Certification

• Some states require that legal transcriptionists be licensed. Certain states require a Certified Court Reporter certificate, which requires passing a state test, while other states require court reporters to be notary publics.
  
  Provided your state doesn't require a license specific to that state, there are three federal certifications that can be earned: a Certified Verbatim Reporter (CVR) designation; a Certificate of Merit; or a Real Time Verbatim Reporter certification.
  
  To obtain the CVR designation, applicants must pass a test on spelling, punctuation and grammar as well as three five-minute dictation tests that gauge speed, accuracy and silence. For the RVR designation, candidates must pass tests on such skills as real-time transcription, Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) reporting and captioning.
  
  

Skills

• Legal transcriptionists must be able to type rapidly and accurately. According to the BLS, the federal requirement is a minimum of 225 words per minute. Candidates also must be able to spell names of people, events and places accurately, and their grammar and punctuation skills must be impeccable. Legal transcriptionists also must be familiar with legal terminology.