Opinion
Arkansas Court Reporters Association by James B. Blair, for appellant.
PER CURIAM.
The following regulations are hereby adopted pursuant to our per curiam of July 5, 656 S.W.2d 694, 1983, in which this Court established the Board of Certified Court Reporters Examiners with directions to promulgate regulations relevant to their duties and submit them to this Court for approval:
1. The following definitions are set forth: The word "Section" refers to sections of the per curiam of July 5, 1983. "Board " hereinafter referred to, is the Certified Court Reporter Examiners Board. "Certified Court Reporter," or its abbreviation, "CCR," means any person holding a valid regular or temporary certificate as a certified verbatim reporter. "Verbatim Reporting" means the making of a verbatim record of court proceedings, depositions, proceedings before any grand jury, referee, administrative law judge, board or commission by means of manual or machine shorthand or mask dictation. No system of direct electrical recording shall be considered a means of verbatim reporting.
2. Any court reporter serving in that capacity on or before January 1, 1983, may be issued a certificate as a Certified Court Reporter without examination provided the application is made prior to May 1, 1984, and is accompanied by a recommendation of a Circuit, Chancery or Court of Appeals judge and two attorneys licensed to practice law in this state who certify that the applicant was a practicing court reporter on or before January 1, 1983.
Editor's Note: This date was changed to July 5, 1983 in Ark., 658 S.W.2d 368.
3. The Board shall set the following fees for the administration of these regulations:
a. $50.00 application fee.
b. $20.00 certificate renewal fee together with license bond renewal premium.
[280 Ark. 604] 4. Applicants, other than those certified without examination pursuant to Section 6, shall file not later than 30 days prior to the next examination date, a written application in the form prescribed by the Court, together with an application fee of $50.00, with the Clerk of the Supreme Court. Said application fee shall not be refunded in the event applicant decides not to take the examination or fails the examination.
5. Applicants shall be screened by the Board, and those deemed eligible to take the examination will be advised of the time and place tests will be conducted. Any applicant whose application is denied shall be promptly notified of the action of the Board and the application fee shall be refunded.
6. Applicants for certification, deemed eligible by the Board, shall receive certification upon submitting application, payment of application fee, and successfully passing the certification examination.
7. Examinations for certification shall be held at least semi-annually at times and places set by the Board. 8. Certification granted by the Board shall remain in effect upon payment of the annual certificate renewal fees to the Clerk of the Supreme Court, on or before January 1 of each year, unless suspended or revoked pursuant to Section 7.
9. An expired certificate may be reinstated without examination upon application and payment of renewal fee prior to July 1 of the year in which it expires. After that time an expired certificate shall not be subject to renewal without examination.
10. Each certified reporter shall procure a seal upon which shall be engraved the name, certificate number of the reporter, and the words "Arkansas Supreme Court--Certified Court Reporter"; said seal to be included, with signature, on all transcript certificates, to ensure compliance with Section 9.
[280 Ark. 605] 11. At the discretion of the trial judge Section 9 may be waived with regard to depositions taken outside this state for use in this state, provided the court reporter is authorized to take verbatim testimony in the state where the deposition was taken.
12. Any eligible applicant not certified pursuant to the per curiam Order of the Supreme Court of Arkansas, dated July 5, 1983, or any eligible applicant who is certified in another state, may be granted a non-renewable temporary certificate, at the discretion of the Board, to enable said applicant to work. Applicants issued a temporary certificate shall be given a period of one year from the date of said certificate to complete certification requirements.
13. In the event of an emergency where no Certified Court Reporter is immediately available, a judge of a circuit or chancery court may, in his discretion, grant a thirty day, non-renewable emergency certificate in order to continue the conduct of the court's business; provided a copy of the thirty day emergency certificate is forthwith filed with the Clerk of the Arkansas Supreme Court and Secretary of this Board.
14. The tests shall be as follows:
A. A written knowledge test consisting of spelling, vocabulary, punctuation, general knowledge, and rules governing preparation of transcripts (Rules of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals 12, 13, 14 and 15) with a minimum of 75% accuracy.
B. (1) Five minutes of one-voice dictation of literacy at 180 words per minute.
(2) Five minutes of one-voice dictation of jury charge at 200 words per minute.
(3) Five minutes of two-voice dictation of Q & A at 225 words per minute.
[280 Ark. 606] C. Applicants shall be required to transcribe all dictation tests with a minimum of 95% accuracy.
D. All portions must be passed at the same time.
E. A new application and application fee, of $50.00, will be required for all subsequent testing.
15. Applicants for testing must furnish their own equipment and supplies for reporting and transcribing dictation tests, with the exception of typewriters. No applicant is permitted to use an open microphone or other backup recording device during testing.
16. The content and depth of this examination shall be a continuing subject of review by the Board, and may be altered by amendments to these regulations.
17. The Board shall maintain a file containing names and pertinent information on all individuals who have been certified, including all verbatim notes or records, transcripts, and other papers used in connection with testing.
18. Any person desiring to file a complaint against a Certified Court Reporter may file a notarized Affidavit, attaching any pertinent documentary evidence thereto, and forward to the Secretary of the Board.
19. Pursuant to Section 7, the Board may revoke or suspend any certificate issued, after proper notice and hearing. The notice shall state the cause for the contemplated revocation or suspension and the time and place of the hearing before the Board, and shall be mailed to the registered address of the holder of the certificate at least thirty days prior to hearing. The Board shall make a written findings of fact based on the evidence presented.
20. No persons shall use the title "Certified Court Reporter," or its abbreviation "CCR," in conjunction with their name to indicate they are a qualified verbatim reporter [280 Ark. 607] in this state, without having a valid temporary or regular certificate issued by the Board.
DUDLEY, J., dissents insofar as it violates Ark.Stat.Ann. § 22-252 (Repl.1962).