A Woman Owned Business / January 2006
Full Court Press
 Melania Streski |
By Pat Lawrence
Melania Streski took a steady job and turned it into a highly technical, multi-service enterprise with thirty employees and four offices in two states. The enterprising registered professional court reporter says, “My mother started directing me into court reporting when I was just thirteen. She wanted to be sure I could be independent and had something to fall back on if I ever needed it.” Melania attended business school in Columbus, and leaned steno typing, the very specialized form of short hand traditionally used in the legal field. “It usually takes about six months to learn the basics and another two years to get the necessary speed of 225 words per minute with 95% accuracy.”
She was eighteen when she took her first position as a court reporter in Canton, OH. Two years later, she took a job in Steubenville recording local criminal and divorce cases, often before the same judge, for seven years. It was a good, steady job, but it wasn’t enough.
“I felt that I needed personal and professional growth on a daily basis. I wanted to be in a position to learn from expert witnesses, learn about medicine and medical terminology, and be exposed to a variety of people and experiences in all walks of life. In a major city, I might have been able to specialize in more complicated cases but in a smaller community you have to take whatever is available in the jurisdiction.”
In 1980, she opened Streski Reporting Services, taking classes to become proficient in medical terminology and visiting attorney’s offices to get established as a free lance reporter. She kept abreast of technical developments in her field, quickly incorporating them into her work. From her first computer to her latest expansion, “I kept investing in new technology. If a new service arrived, I was the first to introduce it.” She was quick to appreciate the benefits in technical advances, turning transcripts in ASCI for emailing, utilizing transcript management software like Summation and videoconferencing.
Now, using the Internet to provide real time transcripts, participants across the country can give depositions and the attorney can leave with a rough draft of the transcript on the spot. Video deposition testimony can be presented on-screen with synchronized closed-caption transcript text. “Attorneys can also receive real-time feeds over the Internet from their office or attend depositions from their desk with video streaming.”
When she first launched Streski Reporting, Melania worked from her basement. “The decision to buy the historical property on 12th Street in Wheeling was emotional and financial.” In 1993, the business that had become Streski Reporting and Video Service moved downtown.
Melania kept expanding, increasing litigation support services and adding personnel. She opened offices in Morgantown, Pittsburgh and Steubenville and hired court reporters across the state. “I’ve refinanced my home several times to refinance my business!” The company offers a wide variety of services for attorneys including verbatim stenotype reporting, real-time reporting, Internet depositions, scanned and hyperlinked exhibits, video depositions, video conferencing, video streaming, digital video/text synchronization and more.
Last year, as a new LLC, the company was renamed MDStreski, and Melania launched a new division, Axiom Trial Presentations.
Melania says, “As the courts become paperless, attorneys want better ways to present their cases. They look to outside service providers for the technology and trained personnel to create high quality, cost-effective courtroom presentations.” Using a variety of specialized programs, Melania and her team of professionals “take the evidence and digitalize it, so it can be presented on-screen in an interesting, informative manner to keep the jury’s attention and help them retain the information. Jurors can see, read and receive the evidence in an orderly method. And, it improves the performance of whichever side is using it.” Presentations may include images, photos, videos, text, web pages, interactive 3-D models or PowerPoint® and more. During evidence presentation, attorneys can locate and playback any testimony they need in seconds. According to Melania, “All the federal courtrooms now are wired and furnished with monitors and screens.”
At forty, Melania took time for romance. She met her future husband in the Atlanta airport. Although she still works ten hour days, “I used to do that seven days a week! Nothing has been easy or smooth. At times, it has been very demanding; at times, very rewarding. I’m very big on training and on keeping abreast of new technologies. I have a wonderful staff and we work hard to satisfy our clients.”
She says, “It’s been a good life, with travel and freedom and knowledge in many different fields.” The personal and professional growth that she hoped for as a young woman is still in progress.
For more information, call 304-230-1333 or visit http://www.streski.com.
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