Documentation is the key to a successful defense of an employment law claim. Whether it is an FMLA lawsuit where the critical question is how you completed the Designation Notice or an ADA lawsuit where you are trying to prove you engaged in an interactive process to try and accommodate a disabled employee, the question remains the same – how much documentation is enough? Even more complicated is the question of documenting internal investigations, as your investigation file will always be "on trial" in front of a jury. Which documents prepared during an internal investigation are privileged and protected from disclosure as attorney work product or attorney/client communications and which are not? Do you need signed witness statements or will notes from the investigation team suffice? Add to this mix the question of retaining documents for the correct period of time as required by state and federal law and you have a recipe for disaster if your organization is not in compliance. Don’t miss this next Third Thursday Breakfast Briefing where M. Kim Vance of Baker Donelson will examine legal requirements and best practices for maintaining bulletproof documentation.
Continuing Education Credit:
This program has been submitted to the HR Certification Institute for review. This program is pending CLE credit in the state of Tennessee.