Licensing by state / Rhode Island

Court reporter licensing in Rhode Island

Rhode Island does not require a state license to work as a court reporter. Our source for this page is a secondary summary; treat it as a lead, not the rule.

State credential required

No

Credential

None. No state credential exists.

Issued by

No state board; courts and agencies set their own hiring standards (see notes).

How you qualify

No state exam. Employers commonly ask for an NCRA or NVRA credential.

NCRA RPR accepted

Not applicable

Fees

None

Renewal

None

Continuing education

None required by the state

No licensing or certification statute for court reporters was found. R.I. Gen. Laws chapter 8-5 (Court Secretaries, Court Reporters, and Electronic Court Reporters) governs official reporters only: section 8-5-3 has the superior court justices appoint competent shorthand writers or stenotypists as court reporters serving at the pleasure of the court, with no certification or credential requirement, and lets the presiding justice employ electronic court reporters. Section 8-5-4.1 mentions freelance court reporters only to set note retention periods (seven years for transcribed proceedings, ten years for untranscribed). Rhode Island does not appear in NCRA's state table. The finding rests on the absence of any licensing provision, so confidence is low.

Exam speeds and legs for the national credentials are on the certifications page; the path from school to the exam is in how to become a court reporter.