Record watch: transcription and justice in Canada and the U.S. — late September 2026
In Texas, an AI-assisted deposition transcript reaches the state Supreme Court; California opens another way into court reporting; and the closing of an Acadian courthouse brings the Commissioner of Official Languages to the Supreme Court of Canada.
Texas: an AI-assisted transcript before the state Supreme Court
On October 6, 2026, the Supreme Court of Texas will hear In re Patrick Hughey (No. 25‑0463). A Montgomery County trial court struck the transcript of a deposition that had been recorded without a court reporter and transcribed with the help of artificial intelligence, and barred its use. The National Court Reporters Association, joined by the Texas Court Reporters Association and the Texas Deposition Reporters Association, argues that Texas law entrusts the official record to certified professionals. On September 22, an amicus brief on the other side was filed for the Institute for Constitutional AI Law: in its view, the existing rules already allow such depositions, provided the transcript can be authenticated, verified and challenged.
Why it matters: the question is ours — who answers for the accuracy of a transcript when a machine produced it?
California: another way into court reporting
On September 18, 2026, Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 2783 (Chapter 312, Statutes of 2026), which took effect immediately. Candidates who hold the National Court Reporters Association’s Registered Professional Reporter certification can now use it to pass the dictation and transcription part of the state’s certified shorthand reporter exam. The law also extends to July 1, 2028 the remote court reporting pilot run in five counties, including Los Angeles and San Bernardino; the Judicial Council must report to the Legislature by January 1, 2027.
Why it matters: facing the shortage, California is not only betting on recording; it is also widening the way into the profession.
New Brunswick: an Acadian courthouse at the Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Canada will hear the appeal of the Forum des maires de la Péninsule acadienne, which challenges the 2022 closing of the Caraquet courthouse and the conversion of the Tracadie courthouse into a satellite court. On September 21, the Commissioner of Official Languages, Kelly Burke, said she is seeking leave to intervene, since the case could affect how language rights are interpreted and applied across the country. On September 18, the Attorney General of Canada had also asked to intervene, to argue that a decision that breaches no Charter right does not have to weigh Charter values. The mayors won at first instance; the New Brunswick Court of Appeal reversed that judgment in September 2025. No hearing date has been set.
Why it matters: where hearings take place in French, the record is made in French; the map of courthouses is also the map of transcripts.
What we take from it
Three questions keep coming back: who produces the record, by what means, and in which language. AI and remote reporting are gaining ground, often for the good of access to justice. But a transcript that will be quoted before a judge must be checked by a person who understands what was said, and who answers for it. In two languages, all the more so.
Sources
- The JCR (NCRA), “NCRA files amicus brief in Texas Supreme Court case” (Sept. 14, 2026)
- GlobeNewswire, Concierra Legal’s release on its brief in the Hughey case (Sept. 22, 2026)
- Office of the Governor of California, “Governor Newsom issues legislative update 9.18.26” (Sept. 18, 2026)
- CalMatters Digital Democracy, AB 2783: Court reporting
- The JCR (NCRA), “Court Reporters Board of California accepts NCRA’s RPR” (Sept. 22, 2026)
- Global News (The Canadian Press), “Official languages commissioner to intervene in N.B. French courthouse closure case” (Sept. 21, 2026)
- ONFR, “Ottawa veut intervenir en Cour suprême contre des Acadiens” (Sept. 2026, in French)
General information, not legal advice. Rules change and differ from one forum to the next: check the current text and what your forum requires.
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