Hagwood & Tipton

Hotel Safety and Security Risks to Owners, Operators & Insurance

by Hagwood & Tipton in Insurance & Loss Prevention, Lodging, Risk Management, Safety & Security. Posted June 29, 2022

The extent of liability to the owner, operator, and insurer of a hotel for any injury to a guest on the premises must always be determined on a case-by-case and state-by-state basis. However, there are some general principles that can be helpful in mitigating risk for each of the aforementioned parties when a guest is ...

“But For” COVID-19: Trending Causation Theories in COVID-19 Litigation

by Hagwood & Tipton in Coronavirus (COVID-19), Legal. Posted October 22, 2020

As the Covid pandemic spread across the world and the United States, neighborhood pools, parks, gyms and all other manners of public gathering places began to close and many people began to wonder about the potential liability of remaining open or continuing to do business. Almost every defense attorney probably had the same reaction, “how ...

Lizard-Proof Your Witness

by Hagwood & Tipton in Legal. Posted August 22, 2020

Teach them the Game. Your witnesses are savvier than you think. We lawyers do inhabit a strange world where logic and reason do not always prevail, and the rules do not always comport with what lay people would call common sense. However, give your witnesses credit. Most of them can understand the manipulation game being ...

Reptile Theory: Using the Primitive Brain to Increase Plaintiff’s Verdicts

by Michael Phillips in Legal. Posted November 16, 2019

Jane Doe was the victim of a sexual assault while a guest at Marrilton Garden Inn & Courtyard Suites. She has filed a multi-million-dollar suit against Heavenly Hospitality Management, LLC d/b/a Marrilton Garden Inn & Courtyard Suites, Marrilton, Inc., (several subsidiaries of Marrilton, Inc.) and Gwen Causey (hotel manager). Scenario: Jane Doe, a guest, checks ...

A Discussion of the Reptile Trial Strategy Through The Lens of the Erin Andrews v. Marriott International Lawsuit

by Hagwood & Tipton in Legal. Posted July 11, 2019

I. WHAT IS THE REPTILE THEORY/STRATEGY? Reptile: The 2009 Manual of the Plaintiff’s Revolution, authored by Don Keenan and David Ball, was published in 2009. This book is offered exclusively to plaintiff’s lawyers and provides a strategy for plaintiff’s attorneys in most stages of litigation. The Reptile theory is derived from a model of the ...

Defending Cases In High Crime Areas

by Hagwood & Tipton in Legal, Safety & Security. Posted December 18, 2018

Depending on where you do business, crime and its associated consequences may simply be a cost of doing business. Unfortunately, savvy Plaintiff’s lawyers have carved out a niche practice by targeting businesses in high crime areas of our inner cities/Plaintiff-friendly venues. Frequently hotels, restaurants, bars, and the like find themselves as repeat targets in premises ...

Effectively Using Social Media At Trial

by Hagwood & Tipton in Legal, Technology. Posted November 20, 2018

The process begins with obtaining information via requests for production, interrogatories, requests for admissions, depositions, etc. If used effectively, social media discovery can become an effective defense strategy that will withstand objections and scrutiny at trial. Social media evidence is important information to explore, especially considering most people (Plaintiffs) tend to have no filter when ...