Speech Recognition Software in the Legal Field

Many attorneys now use speech recognition software in their practices. Dragon Naturally Speaking, one of the more popular speech recognition programs, transcribes a user’s voice automatically as the user speaks. To bold or italicize words, the user simply states “bold” or “italics” before the desired word. Dragon also allows the user to cut and paste from standard forms, and it allows a user to insert common clauses into a document (e.g. if a user says “insert spendthrift clause,” the program will insert the full clause automatically).

Another form of speech recognition software used by attorneys is digital dictation. This phone service syncs a user’s dictation with his or her computer, and a staff member can later transcribe the synced material.

See New Technologies and the Elder Law Practice. Part 1: Speech Recognition Software, ElderLawAnswers, Nov. 29, 2010.