---
title: Retrieving meeting transcripts | Lightfield
description: List and retrieve meetings, read the transcript relationship, and download the transcript file via the Lightfield API.
---

Meetings are first-class objects in the Lightfield API. You can list and retrieve them like any other CRM record, and a retrieved meeting exposes its related data — including the transcript — through the `$transcript` relationship.

This guide covers reading meetings and downloading their transcripts. To attach or replace a transcript, see [Uploading meeting transcripts](/using-the-api/uploading-meeting-transcripts/index.md).

## Before you begin

You will need:

- A valid [API key](/using-the-api/api-keys/index.md)
- The `meetings:read` scope to list and retrieve meetings
- The `files:read` scope to download the transcript file

All requests use these headers:

```
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY
Lightfield-Version: 2026-03-01
```

## List meetings

Use [`GET /v1/meetings`](/api/resources/meeting/methods/list/index.md) to fetch a paginated list of meetings. See [List methods](/using-the-api/list-endpoints/index.md) for shared pagination and filtering parameters.

Terminal window

```
curl https://api.lightfield.app/v1/meetings \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Lightfield-Version: 2026-03-01"
```

List responses are privacy-filtered per caller. To read the full content of a meeting — including the `$transcript` relationship — retrieve it by ID.

## Retrieve a meeting by ID

Use [`GET /v1/meetings/{id}`](/api/resources/meeting/methods/retrieve/index.md) to fetch a single meeting with its fields and relationships. When the caller has `FULL` access, the response includes the `$transcript` relationship pointing at the transcript file.

Terminal window

```
curl https://api.lightfield.app/v1/meetings/$MEETING_ID \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Lightfield-Version: 2026-03-01"
```

A successful response for a caller with `FULL` access looks like:

```
{
  "id": "mtg_abc123",
  "objectType": "meeting",
  "createdAt": "2026-04-07T21:00:00.000Z",
  "updatedAt": "2026-04-07T21:50:00.000Z",
  "fields": {
    "$title": { "valueType": "TEXT", "value": "Customer Call" },
    "$startDate": { "valueType": "DATETIME", "value": "2026-04-07T21:00:00.000Z" },
    "$endDate": { "valueType": "DATETIME", "value": "2026-04-07T21:45:00.000Z" },
    "$organizerEmail": { "valueType": "EMAIL", "value": "alex@acme.com" },
    "$attendeeEmails": { "valueType": "EMAIL", "value": ["alex@acme.com", "jamie@example.com"] },
    "$privacySetting": { "valueType": "TEXT", "value": "FULL" }
  },
  "relationships": {
    "$transcript": {
      "cardinality": "HAS_ONE",
      "objectType": "file",
      "values": ["fil_abc123"]
    }
  },
  "accessLevel": "FULL"
}
```

The transcript is a completed File API upload (`fil_...`) exposed through `relationships.$transcript`. Read the file ID from `relationships.$transcript.values`, then download it.

`$transcript` is a `HAS_ONE` relationship, so `values` contains at most one file ID. When the caller only has `METADATA` access, `relationships.$transcript` is omitted from the response. See [Transcript visibility](#transcript-visibility) below.

## Download the transcript

Read the file ID from `relationships.$transcript.values`, then request a temporary signed download URL with [`GET /v1/files/{id}/url`](/using-the-api/file-uploads/index.md):

Terminal window

```
curl https://api.lightfield.app/v1/files/$FILE_ID/url \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Lightfield-Version: 2026-03-01"
```

A successful response returns a signed URL and its expiry:

```
{
  "url": "https://...",
  "expiresAt": "2026-04-07T22:00:00.000Z"
}
```

Fetch the transcript bytes from `url` before `expiresAt`. Request a fresh URL if it expires.

## Transcript visibility

Meeting retrieval is privacy-filtered, so whether you see the `$transcript` relationship depends on the caller’s resolved access level:

| Access level | What the caller can see                                                                                                         |
| ------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `FULL`       | Full meeting content, including the real title, description, organizer and attendee emails, and the `$transcript` relationship. |
| `METADATA`   | A metadata-safe view; sensitive fields are redacted and `relationships.$transcript` is omitted.                                 |

Admins and meeting participants always get `FULL` access. Other callers receive the meeting’s resolved privacy setting. A transcript can be attached to a meeting even if a particular caller’s `GET /v1/meetings/{id}` response does not show the `$transcript` relationship.

For the full access model — including who counts as a participant and how `$privacySetting` differs from `accessLevel` — see [Meeting privacy and transcript visibility](/using-the-api/uploading-meeting-transcripts#meeting-privacy-and-transcript-visibility/index.md).

## End-to-end flow

1. `GET /v1/meetings` to find the meeting, or skip ahead if you already have its ID.
2. `GET /v1/meetings/{id}` and read `relationships.$transcript.values` for the transcript file ID.
3. `GET /v1/files/{id}/url` to get a signed download URL.
4. Fetch the transcript bytes from the returned `url` before it expires.

## Next steps

- **[Uploading meeting transcripts](/using-the-api/uploading-meeting-transcripts/index.md)** — Attach or replace a transcript on a meeting.
- **[File uploads](/using-the-api/file-uploads/index.md)** — Reference for the file lifecycle and signed download URLs.
- **[Fields and relationships](/using-the-api/fields-and-relationships/index.md)** — How relationships like `$transcript` are represented.
- **[API Reference](/api/resources/meeting/index.md)** — Full endpoint reference for the meeting resource.