If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? Philosophers disagree on the answer to this venerable question, as is their way. But if something is said in a trial court and no reporter is around to record it, you can be sure of the answer: there was no sound. One of the immutable rules of appellate law is that “if it is not in the record, it did not happen.”

In Jameson v. Desta, the California Supreme Court had occasion to reflect on how crucial a verbatim transcript of trial court proceedings can be to an appeal. The presence of a court reporter is so important, the court decided, that inability to pay cannot be a barrier to engaging a reporter in a civil action.

This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.

To view this content, please continue to their sites.

Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now

Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now

Why am I seeing this?

LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law are third party online distributors of the broad collection of current and archived versions of ALM's legal news publications. LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law customers are able to access and use ALM's content, including content from the National Law Journal, The American Lawyer, Legaltech News, The New York Law Journal, and Corporate Counsel, as well as other sources of legal information.

For questions call 1-877-256-2472 or contact us at [email protected]