Problems with getting paid.. what should I do?
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Asked by krp {57}
9/4/2010 4:34:26 PM I would love some advice. One of the agencies I work for is getting worse than ever with payment. I'm due a significant amount of money from months ago. The only time I get paid is if I ask if the invoices have been paid yet. Even then, I'll be told my check is coming and it never does. I have to keep calling and asking where my money is. I'm getting a little fed up with it. I hear all the time that it's normal to wait a long time to get paid, but months and months and a lot of money later?? What should I do?! 
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 |  Answered by jcourtreporter {148} 9/4/2010 8:25:57 PM | [0 Votes] Vote this up Flag as inappropriate |
There is no question that the economy is affecting everyone and we are starting/continuing to feel the trickle-down...It is taking some clients up to six months to pay, and even insurance companies are taking upwards of 90 days or more. Very frustrating when you're working your butt off for no money, and, of course, everyone still needs their transcript yesterday. You feel like you need to bartend at night for some cash! As court reporters we may be somewhat "recession-proof" in that the work doesn't necessarily go away; just no one is paying you to do it! And, therefore, it's taking me twice as long (embarrasingly so) to my bills. But, what should you do? Not take the depo? VERY FRUSTRATING!
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|  Answered by Susan Crivello {53} 9/17/2010 6:44:10 AM | [0 Votes] Vote this up Flag as inappropriate |
I love this forum! How do you know what the agencies are getting paid from their clients? Is there a way to find that out? I am sure they are not charging each client the same rate depending on volume. Deborah Merideth, I love your idea of cultivating your own clients. Why not?
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| Answered by esh {15} 9/19/2010 12:36:46 AM | [0 Votes] Vote this up Flag as inappropriate |
Debi, I am in a similiar position. I have an $11,000 judgment and have begun garnishment proceedings. I have found out that she is having her current reporters bill their invoices through their own firm names to avoid paying me. How sad...I worked so hard for that money!! The majority of my invoices have been paid. Back to the original question; if you're not happy with the way you're being paid, don't continue to take the work. It won't get better. There are ethical reporting agencies who need good court reporters! |
Comments from Facebook | ||
 | Jennifer Metesh Send a demand letter and find a better agency Saturday, September 04, 2010 | |
 | Lisa Koppel Find a sugar daddy. Saturday, September 04, 2010 | |
 | Jackie Sigwing Don`t take work from them anymore. I hope the reporters who take work from my agency understand that I have some invoices still out from April, to be paid by an insurance company, no less, who used to pay easily within 60 days. There are a lot who just don`t anymore. It`s amazing how long we are expected to wait for payment on depos sometimes, but with all the expenses we have (rent, exhibit copies, office supplies, postage, etc.) we are expected to PAY immediately. Saturday, September 04, 2010 | |
 | Elyssa Ledgerwood At this point, you could send a demand letter, and then find a collection agency that will take the account on a contingency basis. They will charge you 15 - 30%.......which is still better than nothing at all. Or, you could take @Lisa Koppel `s advice. LOL Saturday, September 04, 2010 | |
 | Deena Valentino I went through the same thing with the first agency I worked for and I am still owed 800 dollars. I left after only three or four months and am now with an agency who pays me in full for my jobs, the way it should be. Court reporters do not work for free! Saturday, September 04, 2010 | |
 | Jan Naquin Is it supposed to be guaranteed payment? If so, demand your money and move on. If not, then you may have to wait a while for the invoices to be paid. Saturday, September 04, 2010 | |
 | Dawn Whitmarsh You may need to do a little leg work on your own...calling the attorney(s) the invoice is billed to to see is it has in fact been paid to the agency. If that is the case, then I would send a demand letter, threaten them just a little and see what happens. If it hasn`t been paid, then collect directly from the attorney(s) themselves. Saturday, September 04, 2010 | |
| Jackie Sigwing If it`s Esquire, or some networking company like that, don`t expect anything fast. I owe a few reporters on some Esquire depos, but they know how they are. I`m going to do what I can, but most agencies don`t pay on what`s billed out, but what`s paid in. If you don`t trust the people, tell them you`re going to follow up with the attorney or something. Could be they`re using your money as operating cash and holding invoices they owe to people, which is wrong of them to do. No, court reporters Saturday, September 04, 2010 | |
 | Vicki Martin What area are you in? Could you seek work with an agency that pays on the line? I have friends who are reporters that work for agencies that don`t pay on the line and they have to wait FOREVER!! I have had the happy fotune of working for an agency that does pay every two weeks whatever you billed out in that pay period. They do take 35%, which is a little higher than most I`ve heard, but it`s nice knowing exactly what I`m going to get and if I can take a little time off every now and then Saturday, September 04, 2010 | |
 | Candace Rolls Payne Get a job that guarantees payment. If you`re in Florida working as a court reporter, move to a different state. I love the Esquire company I work for. Guaranteed pay and excellent benefits! Saturday, September 04, 2010 | |
 | Debra Montoya Iadevaio I work for Precise too...Hi Margie. We get pad every 2 weeks regardless..You should not have to wait to get paid. Saturday, September 04, 2010 | |
 | Cari Drum Hobbs I just went through the same thing and waited for about eight months to be paid after contacting this agency every month like clockwork to find out if the invoices had been paid. Finally I asked one last time and told them that I was forced to seek what options I have for collecting the severely past due amounts and within two hours I had a response by e-mail from the agency telling me that it had been paid two weeks prior and they would get a check to me. Needless to say I demanded a check b Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Wendy Thomas-Wurtz @Vicki, they take 35 percent? Wow, that is great and you get paid. I get 50 percent and have to wait months and months for my money and no benefits. Other than that, I do really love reporting. I`m hoping some day to get steadier income so my finances won`t ruin my life. Lol. Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Patricia Babits 50%, that is so wrong. Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Evangeline Langston 50 percent? WHAT!? Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Robin Hudson You can write a letter to the presiding judge of the case you worked on and tell him/her what`s going on, and copy the agency on it. Bet they`ll release the payment then!50%??? SERIOUSLY??? I hope that includes a typist and scopist, too! Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Katie Wood 35%??? Nice! That`s not the usual, FYI... Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Debi LaGamba Is it legal to contact the attorneys directly? After working for an agency for 10 years and parting ways because of many reasons, one of the main ones being the billing/collection practices, I am out about $35K. I want to contact the attorneys directly, but I`m not sure that is legal. I live in PA. Any ideas out there? I am thinking of sending out a copy of MY copy of the invoice with a note saying, I parted ways, is this bill paid? If so, when was it paid, and if not, when will it be paid? Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
| Katie Wood Debi, what about taking them to court? That`s a lot of money to be out... Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Ann Leeson Don`t be so gentle & allow these agencies to put you off-go after them! Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Katherine Ann hmm this sounds VERY familiar to me. Stop taking work for them & take them to court!! Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Cindy Boedigheimer @debi...whoever said reporters are not allowed to contact attorneys?? That`s the only way to verify. Actually it would b easier to contact accounts payable at the law firms. Bur out $35k I`d do just about anything! Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
| Cindy Boedigheimer @Wendy...you are working for the wrong agency! 50% is totally raping! No reputable firm would even have the balls to do that...not even Esquire would do that! Where r u from? Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Julie Patti-Andolpho @Wendy, you are totally getting taken advantage of!!! To get 50 percent is CRAZY!!!!! You really have to have a talk w/ that agency owner or find another agency. @Debi, 35K outstanding!!!! That agency needs to be boycotted. No one in PA should be working for them!!! Girls, put on your big girl panties and stop getting taken advantage of. We work our asses off and should be compensated fairly.... Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Lee Bates Reading these comments makes me glad I work in Kansas. I really don`t know of any firms here who don`t pay their reporters, and I sure don`t know of any who take a 50% cut. That is scaaaaary! Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Amanda Leigh Wendy, and anyone else out there that doesn`t realize what a fair split is, 50% is ridiculous--and very, very greedy of this agency. I work for several firms that pay on billout (original and copies) at an 80/20 split--uh, that`s me 80, by the way. I also work for some that are 80/20 and aren`t POB--they are smaller firms that don`t have the capital to handle paying in two weeks or 30 days. Many firms offer a 70/30 pay on billout, from what I understand (and that is negotiable 95% of the time). Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Shenna Basye-Cara I`m curious to know how many reporters don`t even know what their split is. It seems more common in my area (DE/PA/NJ/MD) that reporters are paid a flat per page rate for their work and they don`t even know what the firm is billing out to the client. So who knows what the actual percentage really is that they get paid. Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Deborah Merideth At 50% AND not getting paid timely, you`re working your tail off for nothing. You could stay at him and avoid the aggravation and carpal tunnel. I know we all need the work, but free labor? Don`t think so. I freelance finding some business on my own and sometimes work with an outstanding agency -- great clients, 70/30, 30 days max. Try to cultivate some clients on your own. Ever stopped into a law office you just happen to drive by and leave a couple of cards? I do it all the time. You never Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Mary Pulliam In South Florida, the court system made me work for free...very long story...and I quit reporting, still made me do transcripts for free...That`s why I quit....Good luck to all of you. Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Laura Bisignano Where do you live or send me a message. Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Lisa Thomas The animal of the beast of the business! The reporting firms that don`t pay - and in time I`ve had ones that were good turn bad - try all kinds of tricks to not pay. I had one tell me my transcript was horrible, and they had to retype the entire thing and she wasn`t going to pay me. I then sent her a letter that I withdrew the notary (cc to attorney) as she had no right to alter the notarized record. She promptly sent a retraction of her previous statement and a check right away. 50% is way Sunday, September 05, 2010 | |
 | Cathryn Bauer Start sending out resumes. If you put up with this, you are not only hurting yourself, but other reporters who work with you or follow in your footsteps. What they are doing is wrong. I do believe we teach other people how to treat us, and I think it`s time to step up the teaching while looking for greener pastures. Tuesday, September 07, 2010 | |
| Katie Wood Wow...I always said that in court reporting school they should offer business classes along with everything else. We come out and don`t know anything about the business side of it. I`ve been taken advantage of. I love the agency that I`m at now because they always pay and they`re fair. You`re right about the page rates in PA, NJ, & DE. Wednesday, September 08, 2010 | |
 | Choco Rae I was just thinking of going into the college that I went to and teaching a class called What they are scared to REALLY teach you in school! I`d scare the students though, huh?Nihoo...Yeah, darling, I was fortunate to find an agency (Jensen) that pays every two weeks whether their invoices are paid or not. I love that about them. You only have two choices - Jump ship or stay on board. But who knows, before long, you may just go Court Reporter on them (it`s the same as postal!). Good luc Friday, September 10, 2010 | |
Thank you. I ended up doing it that way you do it. It looked fine. I had...
jbergmancsr {1164} commenting on an answer by ebeths {83}
Had this same scenario a few months ago where the witness spoke maybe 2/...ebeths {83} answering a question by jbergmancsr {1164}
I agree. You did it perfectly. In some instances I think it is best to go...lauraromeo {10} commenting on an answer by ebeths {83}
Are you recording the audio from your steno machine or your laptop? ...fstfngrs {1742} answering a question by KD {30}
You know what, I actually love it just the way you did it in your exampl...ebeths {83} answering a question by Shenna Basye-Cara {104}
I think you should put (as spoken) after each one where she speaks phonetic...Rosalie {1907} commenting on an answer by Shenna Basye-Cara {104}
They do correctly spell it as Weis a few pages later. It doesn'...Shenna Basye-Cara {104} answering a question by Shenna Basye-Cara {104}
I know there is a section in Morson's that touches on phonetic spell...AnnMarie Marciw Deis {35} answering a question by Shenna Basye-Cara {104}
I hate it when these situations arise...they always have to throw us for...CS320 {198} answering a question by Shenna Basye-Cara {104}
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