Missouri 2025 Regular Session

Missouri Senate Bill SB413 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2	EXPLANATION-Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in this bill is not enacted
3	3	and is intended to be omitted in the law.
4	4	FIRST REGULAR SESSION
5	5	SENATE BILL NO. 413
6	6	103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
7	7	INTRODUCED BY SENATOR TRENT.
8	8	1105S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
9	9	AN ACT
10	10	To repeal sections 492.340, 492.350, 492.540, and 492.590, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof
11	11	five new sections relating to court reporters, with penalty provisions.
12	12
13	13	Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
14	14	Section A. Sections 492.340, 492.350, 492.540, and 1
15	15	492.590, RSMo, are repealed and five new sections enacted in 2
16	16	lieu thereof, to be known as sections 485.160, 492.340, 492.350, 3
17	17	492.540, and 492.590, to read as follows:4
18	18	485.160. 1. As used in this section, the following 1
19	19	terms mean: 2
20	20	(1) "Board", the board of certified court reporter 3
21	21	examiners as established by s upreme court rule 14.01; 4
22	22	(2) "Certified court reporter", a person who is 5
23	23	certified as a court reporter by the board to engage in 6
24	24	court reporting; 7
25	25	(3) "Court reporting", the practice of shorthand 8
26	26	reporting for use in litigation in courts of t his state by 9
27	27	making a verbatim record of a court proceeding, deposition, 10
28	28	or proceeding before a grand jury or court commissioner 11
29	29	using machine stenography or oral stenography; 12
30	30	(4) "Court reporting firm", an entity wholly or partly 13
31	31	in the business of providing court reporting or other 14
32	32	related services in this state. A court reporting firm is 15
33	33	considered to be providing court reporting or other related 16
34	34	services in this state if: 17 SB 413 2
35	35	(a) Any act that constitutes a court reporting service 18
36	36	occurs wholly or partly in this state; 19
37	37	(b) The court reporting firm recruits a resident of 20
38	38	this state through an intermediary located inside or outside 21
39	39	of this state to provide court reporting services or other 22
40	40	related services in this state; 23
41	41	(c) The court reporting firm contracts with a resident 24
42	42	of this state by mail or otherwise and either party is to 25
43	43	perform court reporting services or other related services 26
44	44	wholly or partly in this state. 27
45	45	2. Any person who: 28
46	46	(1) Undertakes or attempts to undertake the practice 29
47	47	of court reporting for remuneration without first having 30
48	48	procured a license from the board; 31
49	49	(2) Knowingly presents or files false information with 32
50	50	the board for the purpose of obtaining a license; or 33
51	51	(3) Violates this section; 34
52	52	is guilty of a class A misdemeanor. Each day in which a 35
53	53	violation occurs is a separate offense. 36
54	54	3. A person who is not licensed shall not bring or 37
55	55	maintain an action to recover fees for court reporting 38
56	56	services that the person pe rformed in violation of this 39
57	57	section. 40
58	58	4. A person shall not assume or use the title or 41
59	59	designation "court reporter", "court recorder", or 42
60	60	"shorthand reporter", or any abbreviation, title, 43
61	61	designation, words, letters, sign, card, or device tending 44
62	62	to indicate that the person is a court reporter, court 45
63	63	recorder, or shorthand reporter, unless the person is 46
64	64	certified as a certified court reporter by the board. 47
65	65	Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to sanction or 48 SB 413 3
66	66	prohibit the use of elect ronic recording equipment operated 49
67	67	within the courtroom according to supreme court rules. 50
68	68	5. Any person who holds a license as a certified court 51
69	69	reporter from the board who knowingly signs and affixes his 52
70	70	or her signature and license number to a t ranscript for 53
71	71	which he or she was not personally present and did not 54
72	72	personally report stenographically by machine or voice the 55
73	73	proceedings reflected in the transcript is guilty of a class 56
74	74	A misdemeanor. Each transcript violation is a separate 57
75	75	offense. Nothing in this section shall be construed to 58
76	76	sanction or prohibit the transcription methods used in 59
77	77	conjunction with the use of electronic recording equipment 60
78	78	operated within the courtroom according to the supreme court 61
79	79	rules. 62
80	80	6. The provisions of subsections 2 to 5 of this 63
81	81	section are applicable to a court reporting firm. The court 64
82	82	may enforce subsections 2 to 5 of this section by assessing 65
83	83	a reasonable fee against a court reporting firm. 66
84	84	7. This section shall not apply to court re porting 67
85	85	services performed outside of this state by a foreign court 68
86	86	reporter who is not certified in this state for use in a 69
87	87	court proceeding in this state, provided that the work 70
88	88	resulting from those services is produced and billed wholly 71
89	89	outside of this state. 72
90	90	8. A certified court reporter or court reporting firm 73
91	91	shall not enter into or provide services under any 74
92	92	contractual agreement, written or oral, exclusive or 75
93	93	nonexclusive, that: 76
94	94	(1) Undermines the impartiality of the certified co urt 77
95	95	reporter or that may result in the appearance that the 78
96	96	impartiality of the certified court reporter has been 79
97	97	compromised; 80 SB 413 4
98	98	(2) Requires a certified court reporter to provide any 81
99	99	service not made available to all parties to an action; 82
100	100	(3) Gives or appears to give an exclusive advantage to 83
101	101	any party to an action; 84
102	102	(4) Restricts an attorney's choice in the selection of 85
103	103	a certified court reporter or court reporting firm; or 86
104	104	(5) Specifies fixed prices to perform court reporting 87
105	105	services in two or more actions or for future court 88
106	106	reporting services whether or not the services are actually 89
107	107	requested. 90
108	108	9. The provisions of subdivisions (4) and (5) of 91
109	109	subsection 8 of this section shall not apply to a contract 92
110	110	for court reporting services for a court or agency of this 93
111	111	state. 94
112	112	492.340. When the testimony taken before a certified 1
113	113	court reporter is fully transcribed the deposition shall be 2
114	114	submitted to the witness for examination and shall be read 3
115	115	to or by him, unless such examination and reading are waived 4
116	116	by the witness and by the parties. Any changes in form or 5
117	117	substance which the witness desires to make shall be entered 6
118	118	upon [the deposition by the officer ] an errata sheet with a 7
119	119	statement of the reas ons given by the witness for making 8
120	120	them. The deposition shall then be signed by the witness, 9
121	121	unless the parties by stipulation waive the signing or the 10
122	122	witness is ill or cannot be found, or is dead or refuses to 11
123	123	sign. [If the deposition is not signe d by the witness, the 12
124	124	officer shall sign it and state on the record the fact of 13
125	125	the waiver or of the illness, or death or absence of the 14
126	126	witness or the fact of the refusal to sign together with the 15
127	127	reason, if any, given therefor; and the deposition may then 16
128	128	be used as fully as though signed, unless on a motion to 17
129	129	suppress the court holds that the reasons given for the 18 SB 413 5
130	130	refusal to sign requires rejection of the deposition in 19
131	131	whole or in part.] 20
132	132	492.350. To every deposition or examin ation, taken by 1
133	133	virtue of sections 492.080 to 492.400 shall be appended the 2
134	134	certificate of the [person or officer by or ] certified court 3
135	135	reporter before whom the same shall be taken, showing that 4
136	136	the deposition or examination was reported stenographica lly 5
137	137	by machine or voice and reduced to writing in his or her 6
138	138	presence, and was subscribed and sworn to by the witnesses, 7
139	139	and the place at which, and the days, and within the hours, 8
140	140	when the same was taken , and shall include the certified 9
141	141	court reporter's license number. 10
142	142	492.540. The [officer taking] certified court reporter 1
143	143	before whom such depositions were reported stenographically 2
144	144	by machine or voice shall attach thereto his or her 3
145	145	certificate, stating the time and place when a nd where such 4
146	146	depositions were taken, that the witnesses were duly sworn 5
147	147	as to the truth of their depositions, and that they 6
148	148	subscribed the same[, and shall enclose them, together with 7
149	149	the commission and the evidence of notice; and the whole, 8
150	150	being carefully sealed up, shall be delivered by the officer 9
151	151	to the recorder of the county in which the suit is pending, 10
152	152	or in which the property or matter is situate or belongs, to 11
153	153	which such depositions relate ]. 12
154	154	492.590. 1. The costs and expenses of depositions, 1
155	155	whether originals or copies, or related certified court 2
156	156	reporter, notarial, or other fees of recording the same, 3
157	157	shall be awarded as a judgment in favor of the party or 4
158	158	parties requesting the same, and collected in the manner 5
159	159	provided by section [514.460] 488.432. Any party incurring 6
160	160	any such costs or expenses may request the taxing of such 7
161	161	costs or expenses actually incurred by that party whether or 8 SB 413 6
162	162	not such depositions were taken at the instance of that 9
163	163	party or some other party to the suit or suits [, provided, 10
164	164	however, that any judgment awarded for copies of depositions 11
165	165	shall be limited to the cost of one copy per party, except 12
166	166	upon leave of court]. 13
167	167	2. The costs and expenses so incurred shall be 14
168	168	certified by the certified court reporter [taking] who 15
169	169	reported stenographically by machine or voice the same and 16
170	170	shall be further limited by the court in which the action is 17
171	171	pending at the request of either party with said limitation 18
172	172	based on: 19
173	173	(1) The relevancy and probative value of the testimony 20
174	174	offered by deponent; 21
175	175	(2) The time required in the taking of the deposition; 22
176	176	(3) The reasonableness of the charge made by the 23
177	177	certified court reporter; and 24
178	178	(4) [The availability of stenographers or shorthand 25
179	179	reporters in the area where the deposition is taken; 26
180	180	(5)] Charges made by other [stenographers or 27
181	181	shorthand] certified court reporters in the community. 28
182	182	