SOW - NLO Court Reporting.pdf

Statement of Work

Naval Litigation Office

Court Reporting Services

1.0 BACKGROUND

Office of the General Counsel (OGC), Naval Litigation Office (NLO) attorneys represent the Department of the

Navy (DON) in all major contract litigation, federal employment class actions, all environmental litigation, and other litigation matters under the cognizance of the General Counsel. Court Reporting Services are an essential resource needed to effectively litigate the complex and multi-million dollar cases assigned to NLO.

The following information on past court reporting performance is provided for historical purposes only; it is not necessarily indicative of the work that will be performed under this effort. Historically, the average number of court reporting requests per year has been 53, with 79 requests in an exceptionally busy year and 26 in a relatively quiet year. In the past four (4) contract years, the majority of requests (88%) have required virtual services via Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or VTC. Approximately 2% of proceedings have been conducted in-person in the Washington, DC area, 3% have occurred in-person elsewhere in CONUS. Outside of the Washington, DC area, court reporting services were most frequently required in the states of Florida, California, Washington, and Louisiana. The vendor was required to provide a meeting room for the proceeding 3% of the time. Historically, 85% of the transcripts produced have been for depositions, 6% for arbitrations, and 9% for hearings.

2.0 DEFINITIONS

“Court Reporting Services” means the entirety of the services described in Section 4.0 of this SOW.

“Digital Reporting” means the capture of a verbatim record of a Proceeding using State Of The Art digital audio equipment to produce a clean, certified, and accurate record.

“Proceeding” means any on-the-record litigation event where Court Reporting Services are normally expected or required, such as, but not limited to, depositions, hearings, arbitrations, trials, meetings, or interviews.

“State Of The Art” means technological devices and methods not more than one year old at the time of use and, if a device, fully functional at the time of use.

“Stenographic Reporting” means the capture of a verbatim record of a Proceeding by a licensed court reporter using a Stenotype machine to produce a clean, certified, and accurate record.

“Voice-Written Reporting” means the capture of a verbatim record of a Proceeding through the use of State Of The

Art microphones and noise-cancelling masks to produce a clean, certified, and accurate record.

3.0 SCOPE

This contract requires the contractor to provide Court Reporting Services as required by the DON, OGC, NLO, or any person or persons designated thereby in support of DON litigation. Court Reporting Services will generally be required in all fora where DON litigation is conducted, including but not limited to Federal courts, State courts, the Armed

Services Board of Contract Appeals, the Merit Systems Protection Board, the Equal Employment Opportunity

Commission, the Federal Labor Relations Authority, arbitrations and the Government Accountability Office. Court

Reporting Services shall be provided whether the individual Proceeding will be conducted in-person, virtually, or a hybrid of in-person and virtual.

The individual court reporters employed or assigned by the contractor to provide Court Reporting Services shall be qualified as required under Section 5.0 of this SOW. Beyond that, the court reporters shall conduct themselves in a professional, business-like manner at all times. The contractor shall be responsible for providing as many court reporters

-- as well as other personnel, supplies, and equipment -- as may be necessary to deliver complete Court Reporting

Services.

4.0 TASK REQUIREMENTS:

The contractor shall provide Court Reporting Services when requested by the Contracting Officer’s Representative

(COR). The Government will not be responsible for any costs relating to requests made by any other party or person unless expressly agreed to by the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR).

4.1 Requesting Court Reporting Services : The COR shall request Court Reporting Services by sending an email notification to the contractor containing the following information: case/Proceedings caption, the date, time, and location of the Proceeding, the name of the Government Trial Attorney (GTA) participating in the Proceeding, and the

GTA’s email address and phone number. The COR’s email notification shall be sent at least 48 hours in advance of the start of the Proceeding. Within 24 hours after receiving of the COR’s requesting email, the contractor shall confirm, via return email, that it has received and will comply with the notification. The contractor’s confirmation shall include the following: the date, time and location of the Proceeding. Where the contractor is required to provide a room for proceedings as described in paragraph 4.14 below, the contractor shall provide written notification of the location of the room in which the Proceedings shall be held no less than 24 hours before the start of the Proceeding.

The contractor will be notified of any changes to the related requirements as far in advance as is reasonably practicable. This notification may be provided by either the COR or the GTA. For purposes of changes to the related requirements, notification to the court reporter shall be considered notification to the contractor.

4.2 Arrival Time: Upon assignment of an individual reporter for a Proceeding, the contractor shall provide that reporter’s contact information to the GTA and the COR. The court reporter shall report to the location of the

Proceeding at least 30 minutes before the designated start time of the Proceeding. If the court reporter is unable to arrive at least 15 minutes before the designated start time of the Proceedings, the court reporter shall telephone the

GTA at the telephone number provided, report the delay, and provide and estimated time of arrival. At all times the court reporter shall follow the instructions of the GTA in matters affecting the composition of the record, adjournment to other times or places, the hours of the Proceeding, and similar matters.

4.3 Reporting Method: Stenographic Reporting is required for all tasks by default. If express written instructions are given by the COR prior to the start of the Proceeding to use either Digital Reporting or Voice-

Written Reporting, then the specified alternative method of reporting may be used. If the method of reporting is not discussed with the GTA or the COR in advance, then the court reporter shall provide Stenographic

Reporting. Regardless of the specific reporting method selected for the Proceeding, the court reporter shall be prepared to provide real-time testimony transcription with recording backup. The real-time testimony transcription shall be functional so as to allow the court reporter to orally read back the last question asked in a deposition upon request from the GTA. The court reporter shall orally read back the last question asked in a deposition upon request from the GTA. The court reporter shall report everything spoken on the record during a session and incorporate it into the transcript, unless the GTA directs otherwise. Only the GTA may designate any portion of a Proceeding, or any statement made during a proceeding, as “off the record.”

4.4 Signatures: Prior to the close of the Proceeding, the court reporter shall inquire of the GTA as to whether the witness wishes to read and sign the transcript. If the GTA responds that the witness wishes to read and sign the transcript, the court reporter shall be responsible for making arrangements with the witness and/or his counsel to secure a signed copy of the transcript within the timeframes discussed in Section 4.6. The court reporter shall provide a signature page and any corrections to the GTA within 24 hours of receipt.

4.5 Virtual Proceedings: The court reporter shall record and transcribe in accordance with Section 4.3 above, all virtual and hybrid Proceedings as requested by the COR or GTA. Virtual proceedings may take place over the telephone, Video Tele-Conference (VTC) or over an internet/cloud based platform. The court reporter shall record and make available Zoom for Government video conferencing application or other FEDRAMP authorized internet-based platform (if approved by the COR or GTA) for the purposes of recording/transcribing virtual Proceedings.

The court reporter shall provide a link to access the virtual platform 24 hours in advance of the start time of the deposition. The contractor shall make available a support technician for the entire duration of the Proceeding to address any IT issues that may arise over the Zoom for Government platform, other FEDRAMP authorized internet/cloud-based platform, or VTC.

4.6 Virtual Proceedings and Exhibit Sharing and Storage: The contractor shall provide a FEDRAMP authorized, web-based exhibit software tool that is configured for AES 256-bit encryption that allows GTAs to introduce, stamp/mark and share exhibits electronically to all parties attending the Proceedings, including the witness and other counsel, regardless of location. In ongoing cases, previously stamped/marked exhibits shall be stored by the contractor and accessible for use in all virtual depositions taken by GTAs in the same case until the matter has concluded. Additionally, the software tool must have the following capabilities:

• Allow GTAs to upload exhibits the day of, or during the deposition, into a private folder that cannot be shared with other Parties attending the Proceedings, until the lead attorney determines the document(s) can be shared.

• Allow each participant in the Proceedings to download documents shared electronically.

• Allow each participant in the Proceedings to completely and independently view and scroll through exhibits shared electronically, as if they were handed a paper copy of an exhibit.

• Allow the witness to annotate and save annotations on documents shared electronically, at the discretion of the GTA.

• Allow the opening of documents shared electronically in the document’s native format.

4.7 Transcripts:

(a) Transcripts shall be delivered to electronically (e-transcripts) to the COR and GTA in the following formats: (1) full-sized (1 page/sheet);and (2) condensed (4 pages/sheet). Both full-sized and condensed transcripts shall include hyperlinks to exhibits used in the Proceeding, if requested by the COR or GTA.

The contractor shall include an index in each transcript. The GTA may identify subjects to be included in the index.

(b) When real-time testimony transcription is requested by the COR or the GTA, the real-time testimony transcription shall allow the GTA immediate access to the real-time transcript for use during the

Proceeding.

(c) For each Proceeding, the contractor shall deliver, as directed by the COR or GTA, transcripts on or before the following deadlines:

• 10 business days “10-day transcript”

• 5 business days “5-day transcript”

• 3 business days “3-day transcript”

• 1 business day “1-day transcript”

• 2 hours from end of the Proceeding “Rough Draft Transcript”

4.8 Paper Exhibits: Paper exhibits used during a Proceeding shall remain in custody of the court reporter unless otherwise directed by the GTA during the proceeding. The court reporter shall not release any exhibit except upon direction of the GTA, in which case the court reporter will be furnished a receipt. In no case shall any exhibit be released until it has been properly marked by the courter reporter. During the time between the close of the proceeding and forwarding of exhibits, no person shall be permitted to withdraw exhibits except upon direction of the GTA. The court reporter will attach copies of the exhibits to the transcript, unless otherwise directed by the

GTA.

Unless otherwise directed by the GTA, the contractor shall follow the formatting procedures regarding Exhibits as described in the Contract Data Requirements List (CDRLS).

4.9 Accuracy of Transcript: The contractor shall be responsible for furnishing complete transcripts which accurately provide a verbatim record of the Proceedings. If the transcript is typed by someone other than the court reporter, the court reporter shall obtain and pass to the transcriber the correct spelling of names, acronyms, technical terms, and other expressions that may not be known to the transcriber. Where errors attributable to the contractor's performance appear in the transcript (i.e., those which change or obscure the meaning of the testimony, but not including typographical errors if the intended meaning is clearly evident) the contractor shall correct the errors and furnish the corrected transcript within five (5) calendar days from receipt of notification, and without additional cost to the Government, regardless of the delivery time of the initial request for Court Reporter Services.

4.10 Transcript Certification: The accuracy of the transcript shall be certified. Prior to issuing the final version of the transcript, the transcript shall be proofread against the court reporter's notes and/or recordings when a person other than the court reporter present at the proceeding transcribes the transcript. The transcript certification then shall be completed by the court reporter and attached to the transcript by the contractor.

4.11 Legibility of Transcript Copies: In the event one or more copies are found to be illegible, the contractor shall correct or replace with legible copies within one calendar day after receipt of notification unless otherwise directed by the GTA, without additional cost for such replacement.

4.12 Retention of Notes and Recording: All notes and recording will be the property of the DON. However, the contractor shall retain and properly safeguard all stenographic notes and electronic recordings taken by the court reporter at a proceeding from which the transcript has been prepared, along with one copy of the transcript for the duration of the contract period. Upon acceptance of the transcript, the contractor shall turn over such items to the Government.

4.13 Loss of Testimony: If testimony must be retaken because it is lost, destroyed or otherwise not recorded and/or retained, then the contractor shall provide the services necessary to retake and transcribe the testimony without additional charge to the Government. In addition, the Government retains its rights otherwise provided by law and/or otherwise contained in this contract. The provisions of this subparagraph shall not apply to the loss of testimony which is caused by matters which are beyond the control and without the fault or negligence of the contractor.

4.14 Proceedings Room: The contractor may be required to provide a room for the proceedings. If requested by the COR, the contractor shall provide a room for conducting depositions or other related proceedings with or without video teleconference equipment in the city or location stated therein. The room should be suitable for its intended purpose. The room shall be well ventilated and quiet. It should include a conference table and be large enough to comfortably seat the number of individuals/attendees specified by the COR or GTA in addition to the court reporter. The room should have multiple electrical outlets and a wireless internet connection.

4.15 Sale and Delivery of Transcript to Other Parties: The contractor may sell transcripts to other parties of the proceeding with the permission of the COR.

4.16 Deliverables: The contractor shall deliver the following as per the CDRL:

• Transcripts as per the designated time delivery (10-day, 5-day, 3-day, 1-day) as described in paragraph

3.7 (c) above.

• Real-Time Deposition Transcript during Proceedings

• Rough Draft Transcript, when requested by the GTA, delivered within 2 hours of conclusion of the

Proceeding

• Proceedings Room, when requested

• A detailed copy of the invoice for each court-reporting request.

5.0 STAFFING

The contractor shall assign the same court reporter for multi-day proceedings; any substitution must be approved in advance of the Proceeding by the GTA or COR.

All court reporters assigned to work under this contract must be authorized to administer oaths to testifying witnesses in the state in which the proceeding is conducted.

All contractor personnel assigned to work under this contract shall be disinterested parties with no connection to the case proceeding to which they are assigned. The contractor shall use only highly experienced, well-trained, and--in states and other locations where applicable--licensed court reporters to perform work under this contract.

6.0 SUPPLIES

The contractor shall furnish all necessary labor, supplies, software, and equipment necessary to perform the work required under this contract.

7.0 HOURS AND OVERTIME

Court reporting services resulting from this contract shall cover proceedings held between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and

5:30 p.m. (time zone local to the Proceeding), Monday through Friday, at the prices quoted in the contract.

The contractor is required to work overtime (between 5:31 p.m. and 7:59 a.m) at rates specified [cite] when requested by the GTA and approved by the COR.

8.0 RESCHEDULED AND CANCELLED PROCEEDINGS

(a) The proceedings covered by this contract occur in the context of litigation and must on occasion be canceled or rescheduled at the last minute. In the event that a proceeding must be canceled or rescheduled, the Government will make every effort to provide the contractor with as prompt a notification of such rescheduling or cancellation as possible under the circumstances. Such notification may be provided to the court reporter or when circumstances permit, to the contractor. Notification may be face-to-face communication, telephone, email, or in writing. When the contractor, including the court reporter, receives such notification, the contractor shall take all steps necessary to make certain that a court reporter does not appear at the time and place of the canceled proceeding and otherwise mitigate costs

When the contractor receives 24 hours advance notice of cancellation or rescheduling, the cancellations/rescheduling shall be at no cost to the Government. Cancellations/reschedules made within 24 hours of the Proceeding shall be reimbursed in accordance with paragraph (b) below only if such costs were incurred in accordance with the terms of this contract and could not reasonably be avoided.

(b) When a court reporter appears at the time and place designated for a proceeding and the scheduled Proceeding is canceled or rescheduled, the contractor is guaranteed a flat fee rate of $250.00.

8.0 COURT APPEARANCE FEE

When a Court proceeding requires an appearance fee, the court reporter will be paid the rate stated in the pricing chart for that given period within the overall ordering period.

9.0 DELAY TIME FEE

When the court reporter appears to a scheduled proceeding on time and has to wait more than 30 minutes after the start time, the contractor will be paid the rate stated in the pricing chart for that wait period within the overall ordering period.

10.0 TRAVEL

All contractor personnel travel requires prior approval of the COR and shall be in accordance with Joint Travel

Regulations. The NTE amount for travel during the ordering period is $25,000.