Testimony Transcripts: Discoverable or Required to be Bought from the Court Report?

Sometimes facts in a case suggest the need to evaluate prior deposition or trial testimony. Does that make related transcripts subject to discovery production requests? Recently, Magistrate Judge Pamela Meade Sargent (Abingdon) said no, ruling instead that counsel needed to purchase a copy of the transcript from the court reporter who transcribed the testimony. This is certainly a win for court reporters who make part of their livings from transcript copies. It also relieves producing parties from the burden of copying and producing the transcripts. Whether other courts will follow Magistrate Judge Sargent remains to be seen.