Importing Transcripts
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      Transcript File Format Requirements

      Ensure your transcript meets the correct ASCII TXT standards for use in TranscriptPad.

      If your transcript file doesn’t open or display correctly in TranscriptPad, it’s likely not formatted properly or includes extra information like timestamps, headers, or footers. When a file isn’t properly formatted, page and line numbers won’t appear in blue or be selectable.

      Supported File Format

      TranscriptPad supports ASCII TXT files with the .txt file extension.

      These are the native files generated by court reporters and the standard format used across transcript review software.

      Unsupported File Types

      Files in PDF, Word (.doc/.docx), WordPerfect, or RTF formats are not true transcript files and cannot be used in TranscriptPad.

      A scanned PDF is also incompatible because it’s an image of the transcript, not searchable text. Converting these file types to TXT will not create a valid transcript file.

      Transcript File Format Requirements

      For a TXT file to work in TranscriptPad, it must follow standard court reporter formatting rules:

      1. Page Numbers - Must use integer-based page numbers (e.g. Page 1, 1, 0001) either:
        • Right justified
        • Any justification with “p”, “p.”, “Page”, “PAGE” before it
        • Left justified in a page:line format (e.g. 002:01)
      2. Lines Per Page - Must include 25 lines per page with integer line numbers.
      3. Line Numbers - Required for all pages, including title, appearances, exhibit list, and certificate pages.
      4. No Special Characters - Only standard ASCII characters are supported (no accented or non-English characters like ö, ñ, é).

      5. No Headers or Footers - Do not include deponent or court reporter information (e.g., “Acme Court Reporters 800-555-1212”) in the header or footer. 

      6. Q and A Format - All spoken portions of the transcript must use Question and Answer (Q/A) Pairs.
      7. Whitespace - At least one space must appear between the line number and the text.
      8. No Table of Contents or Indexes - These should not be included in the file.
      9. No Timestamps - These should not be included in the margins.

      Transcript files must adhere to certain rules that are customary for court reporters/stenographers to follow when creating the TXT files.

      If You Cannot Obtain a Proper TXT File

      Ask the court reporter for an “E-Transcript,” also known as an “E-Trans” or “.PTX” file.

      If you have the E-Transcript Viewer on your computer:

      • Open the .PTX file

      • Choose File > Save As > Transcript > ASCII…

      • Select Text File (*.txt) in “Save as type”

      • Select Amicus in “Transcript Style”

      The resulting TXT file will open correctly in TranscriptPad.

      If you don’t have the E-Transcript Viewer, you can download it for free from Thomson Reuters by searching for E-Transcript Bundle Viewer.