10 Factors to Consider When Picking a Legal Transcription Service

Thanks to technological advancements, legal proceedings are becoming more modern than ever before. Because of this, more and more law firms are turning to legal transcription companies to record and preserve legal proceedings. In fact, according to Future Market Insights, Inc., the legal transcription market’s CAGR is expected to stand at 6.50% from 2024 to 2034 thanks to the rising popularity of legal transcriptions.

Legal transcription can be an overwhelming task. As such, you shouldn't hesitate to turn to expert transcriptionists to get the job done. However, when choosing a legal transcription company, thorough vetting should always be done first. By thoroughly examining a transcription company, you can ensure that you’re getting the best people for the job.

One thing that can help you gauge if a transcription company is suitable for the job is by learning the factors you need to consider when choosing a legal transcription provider. Here are the ten factors you should always look for when picking a legal transcription service.

1. Quality and Accuracy

When picking a transcription service to transcribe legal documents, one essential factor that you need to consider is quality and accuracy. Both are important when making records of legal proceedings as the entire case depends on it. As such, before you proceed with availing of a particular transcription service’s aid, be sure to check their reputation for quality and accuracy by reading customer reviews and accuracy guarantees.

Additionally, you can also consider asking them for previous samples. That way, you can check precisely how accurate they are when transcribing legal documents. Finally, if they offer free trials, take advantage of them first before completely trusting them with your project. By doing so, you can gauge just how accurate they are when doing transcriptions.

2. Turnaround Flexibility

Legal teams are often under pressure to get things done, especially if the case is urgent. Therefore, there are times when they need transcriptions done immediately. This means that turnaround times are one of the factors you need to consider when looking for legal transcription companies.

If you’re vetting legal transcription services, be sure to choose one with a wide variety of turnaround time options. That way, your transcription orders can be in sync with your deadlines as much as possible. Additionally, consider enlisting the aid of transcription services with rush services. This is because even if you don’t need rush transcriptions at the moment, the option is at least there should your law firm ever encounter tight deadlines.

3. Transcription Methods

Another factor to consider when choosing a legal transcription service is what kind of transcription method they use. Nowadays, AI transcriptions are popular as they allow for lower transcription rates and faster outputs. However, transcriptions produced by AI, while they may be faster or more convenient, tend to have unreliable results.

As AI transcripts aren't always reliable, choose a transcription service that employs human transcriptionists for the job. That way, you can ensure the highest possible accuracy and quality in your transcripts.

4. Confidentiality and Security Measures

Nowadays, data privacy is important to those availing of services online. Almost every service nowadays must provide some form of guarantee that a client’s personal information will be protected. Transcription service providers are no exception to this rule. Therefore, when looking for a transcription service to transcribe legal documents, you also need to consider their confidentiality and security measures.

Data security is an important factor to look into when hiring legal transcription companies for your transcription needs. Without it, client data could be exposed, damaging your law firm’s reputation in the process. Apart from that, carelessness with client data could even lead to legal action and severe financial losses. With that in mind, before you hire a transcription company, be sure to check if they have the following security measures in place first:

• Encryption
• Secure data centers
• Elevated user access control
• HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) Compliance
• CJIS (Criminal Justice Information Service) Compliance
• GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) Compliance

The measures mentioned above should always be indicated on the transcription service’s website. Otherwise, it’s best that you move on to a transcription service that offers complete transparency in its security measures. In addition, you should also take time to ask if the transcriptionists themselves are trained in data security. That way, you can ensure that even the people transcribing your legal documents know how to protect sensitive information.

5. Specialized Service

If you need a transcription service to transcribe documents for your law firm, you’ll want to work with one that has a team dedicated to handling legal transcriptions. Therefore, before hiring a transcription company, check if they offer specialized services. Remember, you’ll want a service with a team that knows both the intricacies of the law and its legal terminology. That way, any transcription mistakes that can lead to legal action can be avoided.

6. Customer Support

How a legal transcription service supports customers is another factor you need to look into before you have them transcribe legal documents. Timely communication is vital in legal transcription, especially if the documents are required for an urgent case. As such, you’ll want to ensure that all possible communication channels, such as email, phone, and even live chat, are almost always open.

When looking for a transcription service, check the customer reviews to gauge how they respond to customer requests or questions. Additionally, choose services that offer streamlined, 24/7 customer assistance as much as possible. That way, any concerns or requests you may have can be addressed immediately.

7. File Types Supported

Believe it or not, the file types that the transcription company can handle are another factor you need to consider before hiring them. It may sound trivial at first but this is important as it can affect how quickly the transcribers can deliver your transcripts or if they can even do it at all.

The sooner you learn if the transcription service supports every file type or only specific ones, the faster you can gauge if they’re the right company for your transcription needs. As such, don’t hesitate to ask them what file types they can handle before you have them transcribe your files for you.

8. Pricing Options

Pricing is a valid factor to consider when choosing legal transcription companies for your law firm. As much as possible, you’ll want a transcription service that tells you how much you need to pay upfront, no matter the project’s volume or turnaround time. In fact, it’s even better if they offer you a breakdown of their rates and fees. That way, you’ll get a detailed account of what you can expect to pay for in your transcription request.

In addition, when shopping around for transcription services, avoid companies that charge hidden fees or ask clients to commit to long-term contracts before considering transcription requests. Remember, a reliable transcription company can complete any transcription request without using underhanded tactics or charging hidden fees.

9. Certification Ability

Legal transcriptions can be used in depositions, custody hearings, client meetings, and court proceedings. This is because they’re often submitted as evidence since they’re admissible in court. However, before they can be accepted as evidence, the transcripts must have the proper certifications first.

Since certifications are necessary for legal transcriptions to be accepted as evidence, check if the transcription service you’re considering can certify transcripts. The requirements for this are usually strict, such as the transcriber’s ability to make court appearances and testify under oath. Therefore, it’s highly recommended that you examine your potential transcription company first before getting them to transcribe your audio file.

10. Experience

Finally, when looking for a legal transcription service to create legal transcripts for your law firm, don’t forget to check their experience in the field. With how important transcriptions can be to various legal proceedings, you’ll want a service that knows what they’re doing. As such, look for telltale signs that a transcription company isn’t as experienced in the field as they appear. These include:

• Low upfront fees
• Limited file formats
• Lack of timestamps
• Heavy reliance on speech recognition tools

Transcripts from providers that present these red flags are usually inaccurate. This is because they lack experience and are likely unfamiliar with the terms and terminology used in the legal industry.

Additionally, the low-quality transcripts these companies produce could result in your firm wasting a significant amount of time and money. It might even cause you to lose a court battle in the worst-case scenario. With that in mind, only hire transcription companies with decades of experience in the field.

Legal transcriptions are a vital tool in the legal profession nowadays. After all, it can help legal professionals win their cases, especially important ones. As such, you’ll want to turn to legal transcription companies that can create high-quality legal transcriptions. If you require legal transcripts, TranscriptionWing is the service to turn to.

TranscriptionWing has over 20 years of experience in the industry. With a reputation for excellence, we serve a wide variety of fields, such as market research, finance, academia, and, of course, legal. We offer a variety of turnaround times at affordable rates, allowing you to choose plans that are best suited to your needs. Get started today and get precise and accurate transcripts from a trusted transcription service.