The transcription industry is projected to grow by 12% or $9 billion by 2034, driven by increasing demand for transcription services, including the legal profession. Legal transcription services are growing in popularity due to their ability to provide accurate transcription while saving time and energy. With the increasing demand for transcription, these companies utilize innovative technologies as aids in the transcription process.
In this article, you’ll learn how:
- Legal transcription services provide efficiency and accuracy, aided by the advancement of technologies, which include artificial intelligence, cloud-based transcription services, speech-to-text software, and the enhancement of security and encryption.
- Time and money can be saved through outsourced legal transcription solutions.
- Human-powered transcription remains the gold standard for legal transcription services, as humans can accurately decipher accents and dialects, as well as understand the context and nuances of speech.
How AI and Machine Learning Are Transforming Legal Transcription
Machine Learning is one branch of Artificial Intelligence that deals with the mimicking of human behavior. It enabled the simplification of data processing for legal research and document review, even creating a detailed list labeled according to priority. It allows legal professionals to preserve their time and energy for more complex tasks.
However, there is a limitation in the use of AI in legal proceedings. In Mata v Avianca, Inc. (2023), the lawyers were fined $5000 due to finding incorrect citations in a submitted legal brief. This highlights the risk of using AI in legal research without further verification.
Even a single error in a legal transcript can be costly and result in negative consequences. Below is a comparison of using AI and human-powered transcription services.
| Category | Ditto Transcripts | AI Transcription |
| Accuracy | 99% Accuracy | 61.92% Accuracy |
| Turnover | As early as 4 hours or depending on the length of the recording. | Within minutes or hours |
| Audio, Culture, and Complex dialects | Identifies culture-specific context and tone, even with messy audio. | Does not recognize heavy accent and lacks understanding of different human cultures. It also usually skips through unclear audio. |
AI accuracy is significantly lower compared to what a professional “real human” can do. Furthermore, AI cannot capture human emotions and contexts, which can impair a judge or jury’s ability to make a rational decision and risk the credibility of the justice system.
At Ditto, we’re a human-powered transcription provider offering a comprehensive range of services tailored to meet specific transcription needs. An example of this is our trial transcription service, which documents all the events that occurred in the courtroom during a case.
How Court Reporters Use Computer-Aided Transcription Software
Court reporters use computer-aided transcription software to transcribe hearings in almost real time. The court reporter uses a stenotype machine to capture what is being said as a rough draft, in the courtroom. The court reporter then completes the transcript at a later time.
This nifty software also has features like timestamps, audio playback, speed control, and hotkeys. Additionally, it can automatically create an unofficial transcript after the hearing.
Top Benefits You Can Expect From Cloud-Based Legal Transcription Services
“In the cloud” has become a common phrase in the last decade. That’s because more data is being converted into digital form, and most software programs used in legal transcription are increasingly web-based.
The transcription industry has tapped cloud-based technology to produce transcripts more efficiently. Before cloud-based applications, most computer programs required files to be downloaded directly to the computer’s system or hard drive. These files are typically data-intensive and can take a considerable amount of time to download. Sometimes, the file is incompatible with the system or other technology.
Thankfully, web-based legal transcription applications provide a much more streamlined user experience. With it, a person can download files more quickly. Since they are easier to use, cloud-based programs have also minimized the need for a dedicated IT person or department within companies.
Another benefit of cloud-based transcription is that nearly any device can access it. Not being tied down to a desktop computer and having the ability to upload files for transcription from any device significantly improves the turnaround time of transcripts.
Many cloud-based transcription services also offer collaboration options so that multiple parties involved in a particular case can edit, access, and review transcripts remotely and simultaneously, simplifying the review process and ensuring everyone is on the same page.
Cloud-based legal transcription also features 24/7 availability. This allows lawyers to submit files for transcription according to their availability, enabling them to gain control over the workflow. Depending on the project’s complexity, a transcription company often transcribes the files within 24 hours or less.
Ditto’s court transcription services provide certified legal court transcripts with a turnaround rate of as early as four hours if needed, which can really make our clients happy.
How Accurate Is Voice Recognition Software for Legal Transcription
Time is often in short supply for lawyers, so it’s natural they’d rather skip grunt work such as typing or handwriting. Thankfully, speech recognition software has emerged, allowing attorneys to dictate and transcribe speech more efficiently. This tool has greatly helped improve the productivity of law firms and legal departments worldwide.
Voice recognition software uses “language modeling” and statistical models to recognize speech. In recent years, the technology has improved in terms of performance, ease of use, and detection accuracy.
Take, for example, Google Cloud’s Speech-to-Text program. This powerful tool supports over 125 languages and their variants. The program features a profanity filter that detects inappropriate or unprofessional language in the audio data, allowing it to exclude profane words from the transcript.
That said, the tool can only go so far. Noisy audio, thick accents, and multiple speakers will degrade its performance.
Voice recognition software isn’t always accurate. Ditto’s legal typing service does everything that voice recognition software offers but with higher accuracy, ensuring that there are no errors in transcribing the document.
Regardless, speech recognition software is now available and has revolutionized the way legal transcription is conducted. In the past, law firms relied heavily on secretaries, paralegals, or external transcription services to convert their recordings into a text form. But with speech recognition software, a lawyer can dictate or play pre-recorded audio using their chosen device, and the program automatically transcribes the spoken language, with about a 61.92% accuracy rate at best. A reviewer will then verify the output for accuracy.
To assess potential litigation outcomes, lawyers must sometimes gather and analyze historical data, such as case files, trial audio and video recordings, or previous judicial decisions. Transcripts allow legal professionals the ability to search through large volumes of data in seconds.
Top Security Features for Legal Transcription Services
Various software and services safeguard sensitive information and prevent unauthorized access to legal transcripts. The most commonly seen encryption and security measures include secure file transfer services and protocols (e.g., Secure File Transfer Protocol or SFTP), encrypted email services, end-to-end encryption software, encryption software for storage, two-factor authentication measures, Data Loss Prevention (DLP) tools, Virtual Private Networks, and password managers, among many others.
The Future of Legal Transcription: Key Trends and Innovations
These advancements have allowed legal professionals worldwide to work smarter, not harder. By relying on machines to complete repetitive tasks on their behalf, lawyers get more time to focus on critical tasks that can increase their bottom line.
For example, our verbatim transcription service saves legal professionals from having to listen to and transcribe audio, which can take several hours or even days. Energy spent on transcribing can be better utilized for legal proceedings and case preparation.
Technological advancements have elevated legal transcription services, enabling workers to transition from manual processes that were once the norm to automated ones.
Here are the top five benefits of these trends in legal transcription:
Saves time
Legal professionals are constantly looking for ways to increase efficiency in the workplace. With the technologies mentioned above, they have automated most of the tedious tasks involved in legal work. This has resulted in far superior turnaround times compared to when they did everything manually. The faster transcripts are completed, the sooner important documents get to those who need them.
Reduces transcription costs
Outsourced legal transcription solutions have enabled law firms and other organizations to reduce expenses by eliminating the need for an in-house transcription team or paralegals to transcribe, as using an outsourced team for this task is significantly more cost-effective. Ditto’s legal transcription prices offer a convenient and accurate solution while maintaining a competitive market price.
Increases transcription accuracy
Legal documents can make or break a case, so transcripts must be highly accurate. Experienced human professionals will then review this highly technical output, a two-step process that ensures near-perfect transcript accuracy.
A recent client, Jamie Tamishiro used to get transcripts from other firms, and had to edit them himself. Now, he relies on Ditto. “Look no further, because there is a better way! we uses to have to spend hours editing and formatting transcripts we got back from other companies. Ditto gives us back perfectly formatted and accurate transcripts were can use right away.” said Tamishiro.
Flexibility
A technology-based transcription solution offers legal organizations platforms that are usually compatible with various file types. Some programs also feature on-demand templates that allow firms to download completed transcripts in formats that comply with statutory requirements. Also, web-based applications are accessible anytime, so time differences or schedule conflicts will be a non-issue.
Confidentiality
Sensitive legal information must remain secured and protected at all costs. Many transcription systems today ensure that only authorized users can access files in the cloud. Advanced AI solutions also use algorithms to monitor activity, further strengthening the privacy and security of legal data. Moreover, hard copies are at higher risk of being tampered with or going missing, which is far less likely to happen with digital files.
The Takeaway
As the legal transcription industry continues to shed its dated, manual practices and adapt to cutting-edge tools, technology is poised to have a significant impact.
However, as advantageous as technology is, we cannot deny that human expertise remains the most valuable asset in the transcription industry. Although automation can keep costs low and expedite processes, human-powered transcription remains the gold standard in the legal setting.
Unlike machines, humans can decipher accents and dialects, understanding the context and nuances of speech. If you require the highest level of transcript accuracy, human-powered transcription—which can deliver precise and near-perfect transcripts—might be what you need.
Ditto Transcripts is a HIPAA- and CJIS-compliant, Denver, Colorado-based transcription company that provides fast, accurate, and affordable transcription services to companies and agencies of all sizes. Call (720) 287-3710 today for a free quote, and ask about our free five-day trial. Visit our website for more information about our transcription services.