The hotel incident report may be a short document with only a few words. The report details the guests, describes the incident, identifies the personnel who responded, and also records when management was notified.
This report could raise more questions for attorneys than it will be able to answer. Who was responsible for supervising the employees? Was surveillance footage preserved? The property had its own procedure. Did previous interactions occur that never appeared in the report?
These questions highlight the reason why hospitality litigation typically demands an examination of normal business records prior to when witness testimony commences.
Begin with the documents that were created in normal operation
Hospitality businesses generate records to schedule, train, guest service, security, and management. Although these records weren’t created to be used in court however, they can be useful in the purpose of determining how a place did during a particular incident.
A witness from the hospitality industry will review the schedules of staffing along with operating procedures, documents for employee training as well as security logs and surveillance recordings in order to better know what duties are assigned to which personnel. A written policy may require the manager to respond to employees who report an intoxicated customer.
The investigation must determine if the manager was in fact working with the manager, whether the report was distributed, and what response the evidence reveals. It is much more important to assess actual operations than to assume that written instructions were adhered to or ignored.
There is an need for a distinct understanding of the restaurant’s record.
The employees are split between the catering, beverage prep as well as customer service and dining room management. This presents a problem for restaurant investigations. An expert witness from the restaurant can provide an explanation of how these responsibilities influence the decisions that employees make in service.
Think about an incident in a dining room, involving an individual who had purchased drinks at the bar prior to settling into the table. The bar receipt may be proof of the initial order, while dining-room records will show the later orders.
But, these records might not provide proof of what the tableserver was aware of about the previous service. Reviewing server assignments, transaction times notes of management and employee statements together can help clarify the sequence. It is important to distinguish: the fact that alcohol was offered for sale does not indicate that employees were aware of intoxication.
Casino Investigations May Require Different Records
Casinos offer beverage services that can differ substantially from standard restaurant service. Cocktails with complimentary drinks, mobile servers, gaming-floor supervisors, as well as extensive security operations are additional sources of information.
An expert witness from a casino can examine the assignments for staffing of beverages and surveillance footage and security reports as well as employees’ communication methods. If drinks are offered in a free service, the receipts from sales traditionally are incomplete.
In those instances the investigation might rely more heavily on surveillance records employees’ observations, employee documents, and the property’s documented procedures. The expert should also be able to spot any limitations in the evidence, and not simply accept a faulty record.
Make sure you keep the evidence until it’s no more available
Conserving documents with time-sensitive information is an important concern in litigation that involves hospitality. Recordings from surveillance systems can be saved for a specific period of time. The details about employees’ schedules and internal communications as well as incident records may be kept by different departments or systems. Attorneys must be aware of relevant documents and take appropriate steps early.
The extent of the investigation is contingent on the type of allegations. A restaurant claim may require bar and dining-room records for instance, while a resort event could need documentation for the event along with transportation arrangements, and security communications. Specific reviews can help determine the records that are crucial and not assume that all departments are involved.
Making sense of paperwork is much easier with experience from the operational side.
Preston Rideout has worked in hospitality since 1996, with experience in bartending, nightclub management, and multi-unit beverage operations. Rideout Hospitality Consulting was established in 2010 and has been providing assistance to hotel, restaurant and resort owners across the United States.
Expert witness testimony on behalf of plaintiffs and defendants has included issues involving resorts, casinos and restaurants as well as hotels. It’s beneficial to have a background in hospitality management to interpret documents that look simple to those who aren’t familiar with the business.
A schedule of staffing is a good example. It lists the employees who were designated to work. Being aware of whether the assignments provide sufficient supervision requires an understanding of the service model of the facility and its operational conditions.
To help build a stronger case to build a stronger case, ask more questions
An early expert review helps attorneys differentiate established facts from ambiguous issues. It could help uncover additional documents worth requesting, clarify what the legal terminology is for depositions and establish which employee decisions require more scrutiny.
Not every discrepancy demonstrates an operational flaw and not every written policy shows that proper procedures were observed.
A professional analysis of hospitality is useful when it explains these distinctions using relevant evidence and well-known practices. If lawyers are preparing cases involving hospitality, understanding the operations prior to questioning employees could lead to a clearer, more accurate analysis of what actually transpired.