A report of an incident at a hotel might only be short, perhaps a couple of paragraphs. It identifies the guest and describes the disturbance, names the responding employees and details the time management was notified.
This report may bring up more questions for an attorney than it can provide an answer. Who was responsible for supervising the employees? Was surveillance footage preserved? Was the property following the rules? Was the property involved in earlier interactions that weren’t recorded in the report.
These questions highlight why hospitality litigation usually necessitates an examination of standard business records before witness testimony begins.
Begin by looking over the documents that were made during normal operation
Records are maintained by hospitality companies for scheduling staff training, guest services and security, management and many more. These records were not always designed for litigation, but they may be used to establish how the hotel operated in an incident.
A Hospitality expert witness may review staffing schedules and operational procedures, education documents, security logs and recordings of surveillance to determine the duties assigned to different personnel. For instance the policy could state that the manager must respond to an employee who notifies them of a drunk client.
The investigation must determine if the manager was actually working on the report, if it was shared, and the response was provided by the evidence. It is more important to look at actual actions than to presume that written instructions were followed or not followed.
There is an need for a distinct interpretation of the restaurant’s records.
The employees are split between the food service, beverage preparation, customer requests and dining-room management. This creates a challenge for restaurant investigations. A professional witness in the restaurant industry could help explain how employees’ decisions are influenced by these duties.
Take a look at an incident that occurred in the dining room that involves the patron who bought drinks at the bar prior to taking a seat. The bar receipt may record the purchase at the beginning, while the dining-room transaction records show later orders.
Those records may not reveal what the server knew of the previous service. Combining the server assignment and transaction times, as well as management notes and employee communications can help clarify the process. A distinction needs to be made when it comes to alcohol: the fact that it was sold doesn’t automatically mean that staff members recognized the presence of alcohol.
Casino Investigations may require different records
Casinos offer drink packages that are different than the ones provided by restaurants. Other sources of information are complimentary drinks serving mobile cocktails, mobile cocktail servers as well as gaming-floor supervisors.
A Casino expert witness may look over beverage staffing assignments security footage, surveillance reports as well as the rules governing employee communication. The standard sales receipt may not be valid when complimentary beverages are involved.
In such a case the investigation will rely more heavily upon surveillance and employee observation, service records, and the process of the property’s documents. Experts must identify the weaknesses of evidence rather than accepting incomplete records as evidence.
Make sure you keep the evidence until it’s no more available
The preservation of documents that are sensitive is an issue in hospitality litigation. Surveillance systems can keep records for limited periods. Schedules of employees, internal communications and incident documentation may be kept in different systems or departments. Attorneys need to identify and archive any relevant records as quickly as is possible.
It is contingent on the type of claim. For instance the restaurant might require bar and dining room records. A resort incident may require documentation for an event, travel arrangements, or security messages. Targeted reviews help identify which records are important without presuming that all departments were involved.
The Paperwork is a Result of operational experience
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 that he established in the year the year 2010. He has provided advice to restaurants, resorts, and hotel operators throughout the United States.
Expert witness testimony in favor of plaintiffs and defendants has encompassed issues related to resorts, casinos restaurant, hotels, and casinos. This background in operations can be useful in interpreting records which appear straightforward to someone who isn’t familiar with hospitality management.
Staffing schedules, like you can identify the person who was given the task. Understanding the model of service and operational conditions of a property is crucial to establish if the assignments are supervised in a proper manner.
A Stronger Case Begins With More lucid questions
An early review by an expert can assist attorneys in separating evidence-based facts and questions that remain unanswered. It will help identify documents that should be requested and also clarify the operational terminology used in depositions.
There are many reasons why discrepancies may not be indicative of an operational issue. There isn’t a single policy that proves that the correct procedures were adhered to.
It is the importance of an expert’s report that illustrates these distinctions using established industry practices and relevant evidence. For attorneys preparing a hospitality case, understanding the business prior to questioning its employees could lead to a more precise, reliable investigation of what actually happened.