The Omaha Bar Association is hosting a town hall on the future of court reporting in Nebraska.

Judges, court reporters and attorneys will participate in a discussion about the current shortage of available court reporters and how digital technology might change their role.

Moderated by Stu Dornan of Dornan Law Team, the town hall discussion will be held on the second floor of the Douglas County Civic Center from 3:15 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. this Wednesday, Sept. 22.

“This will be an informal opportunity for participants in the judicial system to exchange ideas and thoughts regarding available technology and its potential use,” Dornan told The Daily Record.

Court reporting technology has improved by leaps and bounds since Gretchen Thomas, founding partner of Thomas & Thomas Court Reporters, first earned her certification, but the policies that govern court reporting haven’t kept up with the times.

“What court reporters can do today is incredible using all the technology at hand,” Thomas said in an interview. “You’ve never had an opportunity to have a better record than today. A court reporter with a computer-aided transcript, it doesn’t get any better than that.”

“The future of court reporting is strong,” Thomas added. “The future of court reporting in the Nebraska courts will need to change, but I don’t know how.”

Invited panelists include Thomas, judges from Douglas and Sarpy counties, Douglas County Public Defender Tom Riley, Chief Deputy Douglas County Attorney Brenda Beadle, City of Omaha Prosecutor Matt Kuhse and various courthouse court reporters.

The town hall is free to attend either in person or via Zoom. Visit omahabarassociation.com to register.