LEGALCOLUMNThe Pitfalls of Post Incident PaperworkThe job’s not over until the paperwork is done. Done correctly.By Larry DeMarcayWhen an accident occurs on one of T A E-MHE DVENT OF AILyour vessels, an accident investigation is Another form of communication that can cause issues necessary. As safety is our primary con- for a company is the exchange of texts or E-mails during cern, it is important to determine what the process of investigating the incident. Prior to the ad-happened, how it happened and how vent of E-mail communication, company employees were we can prevent it from happening in able to discuss potential causes of an incident by talking the future. Although determining how about them. If one of the ideas mentioned by an employee to prevent a future accident is impor- was found to be inaccurate, that theory was discounted tant, it is also important to be respon- and never recorded in writing. However, with the advent sible while generating documents as the process unfolds. of E-mail communication, any comment that an employee These investigative documents will also be used by the in- may make about a potential cause of an incident will be jured employee’s legal team to prove liability for the injured immediately recorded, preserved and available for review worker. You can create a safer workplace while reducing by the claimant’s legal team. your claim exposure by developing a plan to ensure that the Although there may be a series of E-mails, following documents generated during the investigative process are such an E-mail that debunk the theories included in that helpful in preventing a future accident while preserving the E-mail, the cross examination testimony taken from the company’s ability to defend a claim against an injured party. employee who wrote it may be damaging to the company. Essentially, the damage is caused when plaintiff’s counsel T A R asks, “So, as of a certain date, you believed that the cause HE CCIDENT EPORTThe