Court monitors and court clerks can learn their trade through court clerk training at Centennial College, which offers a number of learning advantages including a practicum.

1. Court Clerk Training Covers Range of Topics
Summary: Court monitors and court clerks can learn their trade
through court clerk training at Centennial College, which offers a
number of learning advantages including a practicum.
With a range of cases being presented throughout the day, it is vital
that a courtroom runs like clockwork. Assisting in this are those who
have received court clerk training and serve as court monitors or
court clerks. But what is the difference between these two vital jobs?
A court clerk is responsible for duties that include: swearing in jury
members, interpreters, witnesses and defendants; preparing dockets
or calendars of cases to be called; preparing documents recording the
outcomes of court proceedings; recording case dispositions, court
orders, and arrangements made for payment of court fees; instructing
parties about timing of court appearances; explaining procedures or
forms to parties in cases or to the general public; and more. On the
other hand, a court monitor must: record verbatim proceedings of
courts, legislative assemblies, committee meetings, and other
proceedings, using computerized recording equipment, electronic
stenograph machines, or steno masks; transcribe recorded
proceedings in accordance with established formats; ask speakers to
clarify inaudible statements; provide transcripts of proceedings upon
request of judges, lawyers, or the public; and respond to requests
during court sessions to read portions of the proceedings already
recorded.
At Centennial College’s municipal court training, officially known as
Court Support Services, students obtain the know-how needed to fill
both of these positions within The Ministry of the Attorney General
(Ontario Court of Justice, Ontario Superior Court of Justice), Municipal
courts, tribunals and boards, official examiners, and court reporting
services.
Municipal court training is achieved through a two-semester
undertaking that is designed on the recommendation of the Ministry of
the Attorney General, which will essentially introduce students to the
procedural rules, family law and criminal law, court reporting and
transcribing, ethics and professional conduct, word processing
applications and more. These topics are presented in small-sized
classes with newly upgraded computer labs as well as through
practical, career-oriented assignments.

2. Giving students of this municipal court training an advantage over
those who may have attended programs at other post-secondary
schools is the fact that it offers a practicum portion, use of an
assimilated courtroom within Centennial College as well as numerous
trips to the various courtrooms and tribunals in order for students to
see first-hand exactly what their role will be within the courtroom
setting.
Municipal court training applicants are required to possess at
minimum an Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) or equivalent
or be 19 years of age or older. Academic requirements include
compulsory English 12 or U, or skills assessment, or equivalent.
Applicants must demonstrate an acceptable level of English language
proficiency in order to be considered for admission. It is also worth
noting that to graduate from the Court Support Services program,
students are required to attain a minimum C grade average and an
overall minimum GPA of 2.0 for graduation.
Author Details: Emma wrote this piece about the municipal court
training at Centennial College, which covers topics such as court
reporting and transcribing, ethics and professional conduct, and more.