Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - (Page 12) H&MM February 2009 | HotelWorldNetwork.com 12 Legally Speaking BY KAREN MORRIS “If no safe option exists, politely tell the event organizer ‘no.’” Be prepared: Unsafe hotels lose at election-night events W e are in the honeymoon phase with our new president, Barack Obama. Honeymoons are lucrative events for the hotel industry. Election campaigns likewise create event business for hospitality facilities. These affairs need to be properly managed. Liability lurks if reasonable care is not exercised. So learned the Hermitage Hotel in Nashville: It hosted an election-night party for the Tennessee Republican Party when President George W. Bush was re-elected in 2004. One detail about the hotel perturbed the Republican hosts. Displayed in the grand ballroom were portraits of the three presidents who hailed from Tennessee: Andrew B.E. Brilliant. The future isn’t scary. Wasteful spending is. Take a hard look at how you currently do purchasing, and you may discover countless vulnerabilities to rising costs, lack of e ciency and more. That’s where we come in, with the online tools you need to take total control of your purchasing, pre-negotiated vendor programs and the ability to continuously measure performance against budget in every department. So, how much do you want to save this year? That’s not just the right question. That’s brilliant. Buy Smart. BuyE cient. Jackson, James K. Polk and Andrew Johnson—Democrats all. Apparently, on election night, partisan politics trump state pride, so the party requested that the hotel cover the portraits. Hotel staff draped a flag over each picture frame to hide the portraits. Sewn into the seam of each flag was a wooden pole, 1.25 inches in diameter. On election night, the plaintiff was standing below a painting draped with a flag. The pole and flag fell, striking his head and causing injury. Complicating the hotel’s position, one of the other draped flags had fallen prior to the incident, putting the hotel on notice of a dangerous condition. In the lawsuit, the hotel sought TAKEAWAY preliminary While political dismissal events can be without the need big business for for a trial— hotels, be sure a procedure to put safety before party applicable politics. when the judge determines the existing evidence is insufficient to support the plaintiff’s case. In this case, the court refused to grant summary dismissal, instead determining that the facts might support a finding of liability on the hotel. Here’s the winning strategy: Review all requests for modification to the space through the prism of concern for the well being of partygoers. For example, the Hermitage might have removed the portraits for the event or draped them in material not attached to a pole. If no safe option exists, politely tell the event organizer “no.” As for the new president? Let’s hope his deeds inspire us to display his portrait prominently and, of course, safely. hmm@questex.com Karen Morris is a lawyer, municipal judge and Distinguished Professor at Monroe Community College in Rochester, N.Y., where she teaches hospitality law. Contact her at kmorris222@yahoo.com. Join the nation’s fastest-growing complete online purchasing solution—visit us today at BuyE cient.com. CIRCLE NO. 108 http://www.HotelWorldNetwork.com http://www.BuyEfficient.com http://www.BuyEfficient.com
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 Contents Staff Management is Key for Smaller Budgets Perspective Guests Expect More from Green Programs Sales Clinic Legally Speaking HotelWorld Update Consultant's Corner Trends & Stats Laundry Investing Requires Return to Fundamentals Limited-Service Hotel-Chains Energy Management Ice Machines Broadband Marketplace Ad/Editorial Index Checking Out Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 (Page 1) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 (Page 2) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Contents (Page 3) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Staff Management is Key for Smaller Budgets (Page 4) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Staff Management is Key for Smaller Budgets (Page 5) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Perspective (Page 6) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Perspective (Page 7) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Guests Expect More from Green Programs (Page 8) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Guests Expect More from Green Programs (Page 9) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Sales Clinic (Page 10) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Sales Clinic (Page 11) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Legally Speaking (Page 12) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Legally Speaking (Page 13) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - HotelWorld Update (Page 14) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - HotelWorld Update (Page 15) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Consultant's Corner (Page 16) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Consultant's Corner (Page 17) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Trends & Stats (Page 18) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Trends & Stats (Page 19) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Laundry (Page 20) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Laundry (Page 21) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Laundry (Page 22) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Laundry (Page 23) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Investing Requires Return to Fundamentals (Page 24) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Investing Requires Return to Fundamentals (Page 25) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Limited-Service Hotel-Chains (Page 26) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Limited-Service Hotel-Chains (Page 27) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Limited-Service Hotel-Chains (Page 28) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Limited-Service Hotel-Chains (Page 29) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Energy Management (Page 30) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Energy Management (Page 31) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Ice Machines (Page 32) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Ice Machines (Page 33) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Broadband (Page 34) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Broadband (Page 35) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Broadband (Page 36) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Broadband (Page 37) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Marketplace (Page 38) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Ad/Editorial Index (Page 39) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Ad/Editorial Index (Page 40) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Ad/Editorial Index (Page 41) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Ad/Editorial Index (Page 42) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Ad/Editorial Index (Page 43) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Ad/Editorial Index (Page 44) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Ad/Editorial Index (Page 45) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Checking Out (Page 46) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Checking Out (Page 47) Hotel & Motel Management - February 2009 - Checking Out (Page 48)
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