Why A Company’s Workplace Accident Investigation Was Ruled Privileged

When attorneys for a man who had been injured in a workplace accident requested an internal company report about the matter, a trial court rejected the company’s claim the report was privileged. The Texas Court of Appeals reversed, rejecting the plaintiff’s claim that the report was primarily business-related because its main purpose was to improve worker safety and prevent future accidents. Companies that find themselves in a similar situation, or expect they might, would do well to note how the company made its case in this matter, says this post from attorney Todd Presnell.  The company was able to make a number of “unrebutted declarations” that were sufficient to convince the appeals court that the investigation, or most of it, should remain privileged, because of how the investigation had been conducted and in particular how the company  had  worked with legal in doing it.