Order a courtroom transcript

How to order a courtroom transcript from Transcript Management Services for Court of Justice, Court of King's Bench or Court of Appeal.

Courtroom transcripts

A courtroom transcript:

  • can only be ordered online
  • is a verbatim record of what was said in court or a legal proceeding
  • may be used for review or reference

Emergency Protection Order transcripts

  • You cannot order a transcript for an Emergency Protection Order hearing issued by the Alberta Court of Justice.
  • Transcripts for later hearings in Court of King’s Bench can be ordered online. 
  • Read how to respond to an Emergency Protection Order.

Publication bans or restrictions

This notice appears on the cover page of certified transcripts:

“This transcript may be subject to a publication ban or other restriction on use, prohibiting the publication or disclosure of the transcript or certain information in the transcript such as the identity of the party, witness, or victim. Persons who order or use transcripts are responsible to know and comply with publication bans and restrictions. Misuse of the contents of a transcript may result in civil or criminal liability.”

Read the Court Information Access Guide for Alberta on the court’s Media page.

Timelines, fees and estimates

Service timelines

Fees are based on turnaround time. You can choose one of these turnaround times:

  • 2 business days
  • 5 business days
  • 10 business days
  • 30 calendar days

The turnaround time starts the next business day for orders placed after 3 pm. When the due date falls on a weekend or holiday, or Government of Alberta office closure, the transcript will be delivered on the next business day.

Your transcript will be released by 4:30 pm on the due date.

Service fees

Table 1. Transcription fees

Turnaround timeRate (dollars)
2 business days0.0072/character
5 business days0.0062/character
10 business days0.0052/character
30 calendar days0.0040/character

The transcription fees in Table 1 are outlined in Alberta Rules of Court, Division 4 – Tariff of Fees Payable for Court Reporting Services.

Estimating your order's cost

TMS does not provide estimates over the phone or by email.

The following information may help to estimate your cost:

  1. One hour of transcribed court time is approximately 45 pages.
  2. The average character count per page is 1,200.

The table below shows estimated transcription costs for one hour of court time – approximately 45 pages – with an average character count of 1,200 per page:

Table 2. Transcription costs – for example only

Turnaround timeCourt time transcribedCost estimate
2 business days1 hour$389
5 business days1 hour$335
10 business days1 hour$281
30 calendar days1 hour$216

Get a cost estimate online

You can get an online cost estimate of your transcript order:

  1. Create an online account at Transcripts Digital Service.
  2. Enter the start and end time(s) of your proceedings.
  3. Choose a turnaround time.

The Transcripts Digital Service platform estimates the cost of your order like it is a completely new transcript being made. Your credit card is pre-authorized for that amount. The final cost might be different – it depends on the final character count of the transcript. The cost will be lower if a previously produced transcript already exists for that proceeding. Previously produced transcripts cost $0.40 per page.

Order a transcript online

Step 1. What you need

Credit or debit card 

You need one of these types of cards to order and pay for a transcript online:

  • Visa, Mastercard or American Express credit card
  • debit card with a Visa or Mastercard logo on it

Email TMS if you do not have a credit or debit card to find out how to order a transcript.

Gather the following information:

Hearing details

  • date to be transcribed
  • start and end times
  • court location
  • courtroom number
  • docket or action number
  • party names

Commencing documents

  • Statement of Claim
  • Notice of Motion
  • Indictment or Information
  • for Court of Appeal, either:
    • Notice of Appeal, or
    • Application for Permission to Appeal

Supporting endorsements

  • sheets of paper where the clerk or judge wrote down what happened each day in court

Court-specific documents

  • choose from the drop-down lists below:

Step 2. Place your order

You need a credit or debit card to order a transcript.

Payment

The estimated cost of your transcript will be pre-authorized to the card you entered on the order page, and held until the final cost is determined. Once the transcript is complete, your payment will be processed and the exact final cost will be charged to your card.

Separate orders

You must place a separate transcript order for each day of a proceeding.

User accounts

You need a user account to place an order:

Order a transcript online

Step 3. Get your transcript

You’ll be sent an email with a link after your payment is processed. This link will allow you to download a PDF copy of your transcript.

You can only download your transcript if you don’t owe funds to Transcript Management Services, an Alberta government service.

TMS does not give transcript cost estimates over the phone or by email.

Contact

Email is the fastest way to contact TMS if you:

  • have questions about ordering a courtroom transcript
  • do not have a credit or debit card to order the transcript

Transcript Management Services
Hours: 8:15 am to 4:00 pm (Monday to Friday, closed statutory holidays)
Email: tms.calgary@just.gov.ab.ca
Fax: 403-297-7034

Transcript Management Services does not provide transcriptions of Bar Call ceremonies.