Unless the Legislature clearly directs otherwise, its statutes are to be interpreted to give indigents an equal opportunity to prosecute lawsuits. No such clear intent appears in the statute governing court reporter fees or in court rules adopted under it. Because verbatim transcripts of trial proceedings are essential to an appeal from a final judgment following a trial, a trial court must provide a court reporter or other means of creating a verbatim transcript of a trial to a party whose in forma pauperis application has been granted.
California Supreme Court (Cantil-Sakauye, C.J.); July 5, 2018; 2018 Cal. LEXIS 4883