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A stenographer who transcribes every spoken word correctly but omits all punctuation has technically satisfied the Completeness pillar of the 4C Rule.
FALSE. Completeness means every word AND its meaning must reach the page intact. Punctuation is part of meaning — omitting it constitutes the 'sin of omission.
Under Admin Circular 24-90, the court may rely on a judge's personal hearing notes as a substitute for the TSN when the transcript contains a disputed ambiguity.
False-The TSN is the court's sole official memory. A judge's notes are personal and have no official standing.
The phrase 'I did not hit him because I was speeding' is a legally ambiguous statement that can be read as both a complete denial and a partial admission — without changing a single word.
True- 'I did NOT hit him' (pure denial). Reading B: 'I DID hit him — but not because of speed' (admission with alternative cause). Same words, two verdicts.
Transcribing 'The witnesses' statement' when only one witness gave the statement is merely a stylistic inconsistency and carries no legal consequence.
False- The misplaced apostrophe implies collective ownership. The defense can dispute which witness's account is being referenced.
A court stenographer who accurately captures passive-voice testimony — 'The money was taken' — has faithfully discharged the duty of accuracy, even if the witness used active voice in the original statement.
False-Converting active to passive voice deletes the named actor from the record. The witness's identification is defanged — the guilty party is erased.
A transcript entry using a direct quotation with exact words is always stronger evidence in court than a well-crafted paraphrase of the same statement.
TRUE-In threat and estafa cases, the exact words ARE the crime. A paraphrase — however accurate — strips conditional phrasing.
If a witness says 'He told me to sign it' and no other male person was mentioned in that exchange, the pronoun 'he' is sufficiently clear and requires no additional context in the transcript.
FALSE- Pronoun reference must be established by the surrounding transcript, not assumed. On appeal, a court reads only the written record
Inserting a comma where none was spoken is a more serious transcription error than accidentally omitting one spoken word, because a phantom comma creates false evidence rather than losing true evidence.
TRUE -A phantom comma manufactures a hesitation that never existed — it is active fabrication usable by the defense. Omitting a word loses truth.
A transcript can be Clear, Consistent, and Complete under the 4C Rule — and still be wrong.
True - The first three pillars do not guarantee Accuracy.
AI-assisted transcription under the SPJI 2022–2027 increases — not decreases — the legal liability exposure of the human court stenographer.
TRUE - the stenographer is accountable for every error in the record including those generated by AI.
