Accelerators
eCourt Reporters join gener8tor; continue to scale
Burlington-based eCourt Reporters has been an active presence in the region’s startup ecosystem since its launch in 2017.
Founders Karen Renee and Judy Gerulat have created an online legal platform designed to connect court reporters and other legal support professionals directly with law firms. The company recently made headlines as the only Wisconsin-based company to be accepted into the latest cohort of the gener8tor Milwaukee accelerator program.
The company participated in the gBeta program in 2019 and had such a positive experience with the program, Renee and Gerulat set their sights on participating in the gener8tor program. The team reached that goal in 2023. eCourt reporters is one of the five companies selected to participate in the accelerator’s current cohort. The 12-week program offers business coaching, mentorship and a $100,000 capital investment.
Plans for growth
The founders are focused on scaling the company and will use the influx of capital to fund development and marketing efforts. To date, the company has $220,000 of investment capital.
“We have court reporters in all 50 states, and we are two states shy of schedulers and law firms in all 50 states. We need boots on the ground in other markets,” Renee said.
“We still have the pain points of accessing law firms. They’re hard to get to. They don’t accept cold-call emails. They don’t accept cold-call phone calls. Connections are best, which the Milwaukee Venture Mentoring Service has been so helpful with,” said Renee.
“We recently did a demo for a law firm. As soon as we did the demo they booked. That is the kind of response we get, but we just have to get that first open door to be able to go in and do a 15-minute demo and then they are in,” she said. “gener8tor will provide huge opportunities for additional connections.”
The shortage of certified court reporters is also a challenge for the company. One way the industry is dealing with a labor shortage is by using digital recording and automatic transcribing software. Veteran court reporter Renee cautions against this solution.
“The problem is there’s too many variables that go into play on a recorded-type line. One of us could end (the conversation) at any time, be kicked out, or maybe (the transcription) just missed a couple of my words because I got an interruption,” she explained.
“But the flip side is that agencies are using these processes because they can get them a lot cheaper than they can a certified court reporter,” she continued. “The problem is for the law firm. The people that are doing these recordings are not certified court reporters, therefore cannot provide a certified transcript. Therefore, the transcript can be kicked out of the trial at the time that your case gets to that stage. So, it’s a give and take.”
“We have vetted certified court reporters, those savvy law firms that want vetted, certified, real live court reporters can come to us. That’s what makes us unique. We are the best of the best, and we have the best of the best in court reporters. So, the best of the best law firms can come to us and ensure that they’re getting a professional experience and a professionally certified transcript, versus something else that could be troublesome in court,” Renee said.
Growth of team
“As our landscape changes across the United States, interpreters become a bigger part of the process of legal access to justice. This is important to everybody,” said Renee. “Our translators are vetted and have the certifications to do translations that can be accepted in a court proceeding.”
Future scaling plans include adding process servers and proofreading services through the platform.
To follow the growth of eCourt Reporters, connect with the company here.
