A report of an incident at an establishment could be only one or two paragraphs. The report lists guests, details the incident, identifies the staff who responded and records the time management was notified.
The investigation could bring up multiple issues for an attorney. Who was responsible for supervising these employees? Was surveillance footage preserved? Did the facility follow its rules? Are there any earlier interactions that were not reported?
These questions demonstrate why it is important to examine ordinary business records prior to testimony of witnesses in hospitality litigation.
Start with the documents created during normal operations
Records are kept by hospitality firms to record scheduling guest services, staff training, security, management, and much more. Although these records weren’t created for use in litigation, they are useful for documenting how a facility performed during a specific incident.
An expert witness in hospitality will review the schedules of staffing along with operating procedures, employees’ training records, security logs and surveillance recordings in order to better comprehend the duties given to whom. A written policy could require that a manager respond to employees who report an intoxicated client.
In the course of investigating the incident, it is important to determine whether the manager was in charge, if the report was made, and from the evidence what was the response. The goal is to evaluate the actual activities rather than inferring that written procedures were either implemented or not.
Restaurant Records Must Have Their Own Interpretation
The employees are divided between the food service, beverage preparation, customer requests and dining-room management. This creates a challenge for restaurant investigations. A qualified witness in the restaurant industry can help demonstrate how decisions made by employees are affected by these responsibilities.
Imagine a scenario in which the client purchased alcohol at the bar, and later transferred to an area at a table. The bar receipt can document the initial order, and the records from the dining room will record the later orders.
The information in those records might not be revealing what the server was aware of about the previous service. Looking over the server assignments, transaction times notes of management and employee records together can assist in determining the order. An important distinction remains: the fact that alcohol was bought does not mean that the staff member was intoxicated.
Casino Investigations may require different forms of documentation
Casino beverage programs are distinct from those at a typical restaurant. The availability of complimentary drinks, cocktail servers on the gaming floor, and security personnel can provide additional information.
A casino expert witness may analyze beverage staffing and security footage, and surveillance videos. They can also look over procedures for employee communication. When beverages are provided as a complimentary benefit, the receipts from sales traditionally are incomplete.
In such a case, the investigation may depend more heavily on available surveillance and employee observation, service documents, and the documenting procedures of the property. The expert should also be able to identify limitations in the evidence rather than relying on an uncomplete record as proof of an event.
Keep the evidence in place until it’s unavailable
Documents that have to be saved for time is a major concern when it comes to litigation involving hospitality. Recordings from surveillance systems can be stored for a short time. Information about employees’ schedules and internal communications as well as incident records may be kept by different departments or by different systems. Attorneys should identify and save any relevant records as quickly as is possible.
It’s dependent on the nature of the claim. The extent of an investigation will be contingent on the accusations. A specific audit helps determine what records are important without having to assume that all departments played a part.
Operations Experience Helps Explain the Paperwork
Preston Rideout has worked in hospitality since 1996, with experience in bartending, nightclub management, and multi-unit beverage operations. Rideout Hospitality Consulting is a company he founded in the year 2010. He has provided advice to restaurant, resort and hotel owners across the United States.
He has served as an expert witness in cases involving resorts, hotels, casinos and restaurants for the plaintiffs and defense counsel. This knowledge of operations is beneficial in the interpretation of records that may seem straightforward to someone who isn’t familiar with hospitality management.
A staffing plan can, for example, identify the individuals who were given the task. To determine if the assignments were proper it is necessary to understand what the service model is of the building and its operating conditions.
A Stronger Case Begins With Clearer Questions
A quick review by an expert can help attorneys distinguish established facts from ambiguous issues. It can help determine which documents merit requesting or clarifying the language that is used in depositions.
There are many reasons why discrepancies may not be indicative of an operational failure. Not every policy that proves that the correct procedure was implemented.
The analysis of a professional in the field of hospitality is beneficial when it clarifies these distinctions using relevant evidence and practices that are widely accepted by the industry. If lawyers are preparing a hospitality case, understanding the operation before questioning its employees can lead to a more precise, reliable analysis of what actually transpired.