8.1 Federal District Court Format & Page Specifications
Key Takeaways
Federal transcript text begins 1-3/4 inches from the left edge of the page and ends 3/8 inch from the right edge (Guide to Judiciary Policy § 520.30).
Each federal transcript page carries 25 numbered lines of double-spaced text at 10 characters per inch, about 63 characters per line.
Page numbers go at the top right, flush with the right margin above line 1, and neither page numbers nor headings count as one of the 25 lines.
Q and A designations begin at the left margin with text at the fifth space; colloquy speaker IDs begin at the tenth space; parentheticals open at the fifth space.
No court, judge, supervisor, reporter or transcriber may authorize a deviation from the Judicial Conference transcript format.
AAERT's certification page says the practical exam "entails creating a transcript using the federal format," and AAERT's Exam Resources page explains that "as a national certification, AAERT has adopted the FEDERAL TRANSCRIPT FORMAT for the CET Practical Exam." Blueprint topics 30101 and 30108 ask you to identify federal District Court formatting standards and page specifications such as line numbers and font.
Where the federal format comes from
The Judicial Conference of the United States first adopted a uniform transcript format in 1944 "to assure that each party is treated equally throughout the country." The current rules are in the Guide to Judiciary Policy, Volume 6 (Court Reporting), Chapter 5, § 520. Two sentences explain why the rules are strict:
- "The format requirements must be followed because minor changes result in significant monetary losses to parties. No court, judge, supervisor, reporter, or transcriber may authorize a deviation."
- "The per-page transcript rates are based on strict adherence to the prescribed format."
Because transcripts are billed per page, extra-wide margins or short pages would overcharge the ordering party. The same Guide (§ 510.40.20(e)) applies all format, delivery and fee rules to transcripts prepared from electronic sound recordings "as if the transcript were produced by one of the court's reporters."
The page specifications
| Element | Federal rule (§ 520) |
|---|---|
| Paper | 8-1/2 x 11 inches, white (§ 520.23) |
| Margins | Preprinted solid left and right marginal lines are required; top and bottom lines are optional. Text begins 1-3/4 inches from the left side and ends 3/8 inch from the right side (§ 520.30) |
| Line numbers | Each page shows numbers for each line of transcription (§ 520.33) |
| Type size | 10 letters to the inch, about 63 characters per line, letter-quality type (§ 520.36.10) |
| Lines per page | 25 lines of text; the last page may have fewer; page numbers and notations do not count as lines (§ 520.36.15) |
| Spacing | Double-spaced (§ 520.36.25) |
| Case | Upper and lower case preferred; all capitals permitted (§ 520.36.30) |
| Ink | Black (§ 520.36.05) |
| Page number | Top right corner, flush with the right margin, above the first line; not counted as a line (§ 520.50.10) |
| Page heading | On every page of witness testimony, above line 1 on the same line as the page number; not counted as a line (§ 520.36.50) |
The 25-line rule has one narrow exception: for daily or hourly transcripts of jury trials, the presiding judge may approve page breaks before and after sidebar conferences, bench conferences and motion hearings, with a half-page billing reduction for each such page (§ 520.36.15(b)).
Font
The Guide specifies 10 characters per inch, not a font name. In practice this means a fixed-pitch (monospaced) font such as Courier New at 12 points, which is what AAERT's Word template uses. A proportional font such as Times New Roman cannot produce a fixed 10 characters per inch.
AAERT's template
AAERT's Federal Format Template for Word contains "a 25-line line-numbering array" that "remains fixed whether text needs to be single or double-spaced, or a combination of the two." Use it rather than building your own. On the practical, a template you have practiced with is far safer than one you set up under time pressure.
Tab positions: where each kind of line starts
| Line type | Rule (§ 520.36.35 and § 520.36.55) | AAERT's description |
|---|---|---|
| Q and A | "Q" and "A" begin at the left margin; a period after them is optional; the statement begins on the fifth space; later lines return to the left margin | Q/A text at the first tab |
| Colloquy | Speaker ID begins on the tenth space, followed directly by a colon; the statement begins on the third space after the colon; later lines return to the left margin | Speaker IDs at the second tab |
| Parentheticals | Open parenthesis on the fifth space, remark beginning on the sixth | Parentheticals at the first tab |
| Quoted material (other than depositions) | Begins on the tenth space, and additional quoted lines also begin at the tenth space, with quotation marks | |
| Depositions read at trial | Same as Q and A, each Q and A preceded by a quotation mark | |
| Speaker/event lines | Capital letters, centered: DIRECT EXAMINATION, CROSS EXAMINATION, PLAINTIFF RESTS | Centered exam line |
A sample page in that layout:
Lim - Direct 4
1 MR. KENNELLY: I'd like to call Mr. Edward Lim.
2 THE COURT: Raise your right hand, please.
3 EDWARD BOYNTON LIM, PLAINTIFF'S WITNESS, SWORN
4 THE COURT: Have a seat, please.
5 DIRECT EXAMINATION
6 BY MR. KENNELLY:
7 Q. Are you familiar with the substance of this complaint?
8 In fact, you filed it, correct? Wasn't that in 2001?
9 MR. NADLER: Objection, Your Honor; compound.
10 THE COURT: Sustained.
(Adapted from AAERT's examination sample. Lines 11 to 25 continue in the same pattern.)
Notice: the header and page number sit above line 1 and are not numbered; the Q line starts at the margin and its runover (line 8) returns to the margin; colloquy starts at the second tab; the examination line is centered in capitals.
Other federal rules worth knowing
- Electronic transcripts may be sold as PDF, ASCII or another agreed format, must follow the same page format, and must not contain protection or programming codes that prevent copying (§ 520.15).
- Compressed transcripts (several standard pages on one sheet) are billed per standard page; offering them is optional (§ 520.16).
- Page numbering runs in a single consecutive series for each proceeding, regardless of the number of days (§ 520.50.10(a)). For multi-volume transcripts, see Section 8.3.
- Legibility: the original and each copy must be legible "without any interlineations materially defacing the transcript" (§ 520.36.60).
State formats differ
State courts set their own formats. Some use different margins, line lengths, certificates and deadlines. The CET practical uses federal format, and AAERT notes that "formats for your particular contracts and/or jurisdictions may vary from federal requirements." On the job, always check which format the court or client requires (Chapter 15).
Under the Guide to Judiciary Policy, where must the text of a federal transcript begin and end on the page?
It begins 1 inch from the left side and ends 1 inch from the right side
It begins 1-3/4 inches from the left side and ends 3/8 inch from the right side
It begins 1-1/2 inches from the left side and ends 1/2 inch from the right side
It begins 2 inches from the left side and ends 1 inch from the right side
In federal format, where does a colloquy speaker identification begin?
At the left margin, like the Q and A designations
On the fifth space from the left margin, like parentheticals
Centered on the line, like examination headings
On the tenth space from the left margin, followed directly by a colon
Which statement about federal transcript lines is correct?
Each page contains 25 lines of text, and the page number and page heading are not counted as lines
Each page contains 25 lines including the page number line
Each page contains 28 lines, of which 3 are reserved for the header
The number of lines may vary if the transcriber uses a smaller font
Sections you finish are checked off in the contents.