Locarda vs Dragon Dictate for Forensic and Pathology Dictation

Many medicolegal offices rely on dictation software for documentation. You speak, it transcribes, and then you spend time structuring, formatting, and editing. Locarda takes a different approach.

Dragon Dictate and Dragon Medical

Dragon Dictate and Dragon Medical transcribe what a pathologist says. In a forensic pathology office, that transcript still has to be placed into the autopsy template, reordered by section, and edited by hand. Locarda takes the same dictation (live on iPad, or a Dragon or dictaphone recording you already made) and drafts the forensic or pathology report in the template the office files. Cause and manner of death stay with the pathologist.

Conversational documentation, not dictation

Dictation tools give you verbatim transcription. You dictate word-for-word, add punctuation yourself, and then organize everything into sections. Locarda is built around a different idea: conversational documentation. You describe what you observe; the AI turns those observations into structured, template-ready reports.

Dictation vs. generative AI

Traditional dictation is speech-to-text only. You say "ecchymosis over the left lateral chest wall" and you get exactly that: a line of text. You still need to place it in the right section, match your template, and fill in the gaps. The tool transcribes; everything else is on you.

Locarda is built differently. You describe what you observe. The AI drafts the report, applies your template, and surfaces suggestions. Instead of a raw transcript, you get a working draft. One input, complete output.

Evidence synthesis and an all-in-one workspace

Dictation software usually lives in a single step: capture audio, produce text. Locarda aggregates evidence across your workflow (medical records, scene narratives, toxicology reports, diagrams, and images) into one workspace. The AI can connect transcriptions to other case sources and help you see how they fit together.

• All-in-one: Scene investigation and autopsy documentation in a single, connected workspace
• Know what's missing: Clear visibility into incomplete sections and required content
• Template compatibility: Universal support for your organization's templates and guidelines

Privacy and Word integration

Recordings, transcriptions and reports are processed in a HIPAA-compliant environment, encrypted with AES-256 at rest and TLS 1.3 in transit. For final editing, you can import cases directly into Word and use AI-assisted paraphrase tools without leaving your familiar workflow.

Task automation, not job automation

"Task automation is not job automation. AI assists with your work. It doesn't replace the expert."

Locarda is designed to reduce repetitive, manual steps (structuring, formatting, aggregating) so you can focus on investigation, analysis, and judgment. The goal is to save time for what matters: advocacy, teaching, research, and deeper case work.

Locarda Team

Building AI-powered tools for forensics. Committed to advancing documentation workflows while maintaining the highest standards of accuracy and security.