Areas of Expertise
Steve Stearns and Skip Stearns, THE HOTEL EXPERTS (THE), offer experience as attorney case consultants and expert witnesses.  In guiding counsel through discovery, depositions and case strategy, submitting detailed opinions, and offering trial testimony both for and against hotel properties, owners, operators, franchisors and individual litigants, THE has successfully served the plaintiffs and defendants of, among others:

Allyn, Hausner & Montanile	Valley Cottage, NY
The Law Firm of Peter G. Angelos	Baltimore, MD
Borofsky, Amodeo-Vickery & Bandazian	Manchester, NH
The Branch Law Firm	Albuquerque, NM
Law Firm of R. Kent Brown	Charlotte, NC
Cadeaux & Taglieri	Washington, DC
Morris B. Chapman & Associates	Granite City, IL
Conroy, Simberg, Ganon, Krevans & Abel	Orlando, FL
Cook, Kotel & Fitch	Denver, CO
Law Offices of James W. Dodson	Clearwater, FL
Epstein, Becker, Green, Wickliff & Hall	Houston, TX
Flynn & Associations	Quincy, MA
The Law Firm of Michael Frazelle	Phoenix, AZ
Freishtat, Burke, Mullen & Dubnow	Baltimore, MD
Gordon, Silberman, Wiggins & Childs	Birmingham, AL
Hale and Dorr	Boston, MA
The Law Firm of Donald L. Harvey	Houston, TX
Higgins, Himmelberg & Piliponis	Nashville, TN
The Law Firm of Joseph J. Hochbein	Cincinnati, OH
Howell, O'Neal & Johnson	Jacksonville, FL
Jolly & Peterson	Tallahassee, FL
The Joye Law Firm	North Charleston, SC
Kinney & Lange	Minneapolis, MN
Kutak Rock	Irvine, CA
Leboeuf, Lamb, Green & MacRae	Boston, MA
Lenahan & Dempsey	Scranton, PA
Leventhal, Brown & Puga	Denver, CO
Law Office of John Lewis	Dalllas, TX
Patrick S. McElhone	Louisville, KY
McGartland & Borchardt	Ft. Worth, TX
The Law Firm of Michael McGown	Beaumont, TX
Meagher & Geer	Scottsdale, AZ
Metier Law Office	Fort Collins, CO
Nixon, Raiche, Manning, Casinghino & Leach	Manchester, NH
Jeffrey S. Pop & Associates	Beverly Hills, CA
The Law Firm of Douglas Rozelle	Palm Beach, FL
The Law Firm of Philip P. O'Shaughnessey	Baltimore, MD
Rasmussen & Mitchell	Omaha, NE
Redwine Law Offices	Dallas, TX
Richardson, Stoops, Richardson & Ward	Tulsa, OK
Rouson & Brumley	Orlando, FL
Schuetze, Gordon & Dubofsky	Boulder, CO
Scibelli and Whiteley	Boston, MA
ShuffieldLowman	Orlando, FL
Snapka, Turman & Waterhouse	Corpus Christi, TX
The Stiell Law Firm	Tallahassee, FL
Ungerman Hill	Dallas, TX
The VanSteenberg Law Firm	Scottsbluff, NE
Webb, Sanders & Williams	Tupelo, MS
Wicker, Smith, O'Hara, McCoy, Graham & Ford	West Palm Beach, FL
Wilson, Elser, Moskowitz, Edelman & Dicker	Philadelphia, PA
Winston Grays & Associates	Cleveland, OH
Zbinden & Curtis	Portland, OR

THE has an extensive background in on-property and corporate hotel management.  Additionally, THE’s expertise is applicable to franchising, the cruise industry, racetracks, casinos and other gaming operations, restaurants and recreation industries.  Cases in which THE has contributed include contractual disputes, wrongful deaths, slip and fall incidents and other personal injuries.  Specific areas of expertise include:

Operating Standards
Product Standards
Safety & Security Standards
Emergency Procedures
Integrity Standards
Employee Qualifications & Hiring Practices
Standards for Training
Marketing Practices
Franchise Agreements & Management Contracts
Franchise Relations
Casino & Gaming Operations

Hotel Industry Operating Standards
Steve Stearns currently serves as SVP at the largest provider of operational surveys for the hospitality industry in the world.  Since joining the company in 1991, Steve has conducted, marketed, supervised and expanded the company’s services including the drafting of operating standards for numerous hotel brands representing varying standards of quality.   In previous hotel management roles over 20 years, Steve was principally responsible for executing and rewriting standards of operation.  Skip Stearns, as VP, Director of Franchising for Omni Hotels, supervised the development of the company-wide standard operating manual, trained executives in its contents and supervised execution of standard operating procedures in all licensed hotels.

Hotel Industry Product Standards
Steve Stearns’ 12-year SVP role at the largest international provider of hotel operational surveys has helped him gain fluency in product and conduct standards at all levels of hotel quality from budget to luxury, from limited service to complex resorts.  Steve’s previous hotel management experience of over 20 years provided hands-on knowledge of product standards at the most senior and complex unit levels.  Skip Stearns also maintains product survey experience in his current consulting practice, and has been the exclusive provider of product and service inspections for the Bahamian government during the past three years.  Skip, as VP, Director of Franchising at Omni Hotels, participated in establishing company-wide product standards, trained all management levels in these standards and was charged with overseeing their enforcement throughout the franchise division.

Hotel Industry Safety & Security Standards
Steve Stearns has 23 years of field experience drafting, supervising, and executing safety and security standards.  Steve has also served, chaired and supervised safety committees.  As a hospitality industry consultant over the past 12 years, Steve’s responsibilities have included assessing, rewriting and consulting currently accepted safety and security practices in the hospitality industry.  Skip Stearns, in supervising the development of hotel and corporate standards operating manuals, also drafted and approved standard procedures to assure customer and employee safety.  Skip continues to evaluate life safety and security practices in his current consulting role.

Hotel Industry Emergency Procedures
Steve Stearns, from 1967 to 1990, drafted and supervised emergency procedures relating to snow, ice, flooding, wind, tornadoes, fire and other disasters.  Steve’s experience in California and Florida also gave him first-hand knowledge of preparing and responding to earthquakes and hurricanes.

Hotel Industry Integrity Standards
In 1991, Steve Stearns introduced integrity audits to his consulting practice.  His work, in this field where there is limited professional support, has led to many improvements in integrity assessment, effective documentation for the legal termination of wrongful employees, and has saved hundreds of thousands in lost revenue in hotels and related industries.

Hotel Industry Employee Qualifications & Hiring Practices
Steve Stearns, serving at various levels of hotel management from 1967 to 1990, was an active interviewer of direct and indirect employees.  Currently, Steve writes and coaches guidelines for hiring qualifications and practices for many global clients.  Skip Stearns practiced field level hiring as a field manager from 1977 through 1982, then as a corporate executive from 1982 through 1996.  As a member of the corporate executive committee of Omni Hotels, he participated in the development of company-wide position descriptions and supporting orientation and training programs for employees at all levels.

Hotel Industry Standards for Training
As hotel General Manager, Steve Stearns has trained and supervised the training of field personnel for over 25 years.  In his current senior consulting role, Steve has evaluated hospitality employees in the performance of their duties at a wide variety of hotel companies and independent hotels, recommended improvements, trained, delivered workshops and seminars, and drafted operating standards for the likes of Disney among other reputed service providers.  Skip Stearns trained and supervised corporate training for all management level executives at Omni Hotels from 1988 to 1996.  As hotel industry consultant, he continues to train employees to establish and attain objectives with respect to customers and owners, and he trains owners to serve the needs of their employees.

Hotel Industry Marketing Practices
Skip Stearns spent the first 13 years of his hotel career directly in sales & marketing field and corporate roles for Dunfey, then Omni Hotels.  As VP, Director of National Sales for four years, he led the reorganization of Omni’s national sales offices, drafted company-wide sales contracts and introduced remote booking capability to the hotel industry.  As consultant, Skip remains actively involved in the analysis of hotel and corporate sales & marketing organizations and practices and in problem solving for increased revenues.  Steve Stearns likewise began his career in sales & marketing, and he performed, supervised and consulted the marketing function for some 39 years.

Franchise Agreements & Management Contracts
As VP, Director of Franchising for Omni Hotels, Skip Stearns has participated in the drafting of Uniform Franchise Offering Circulars, negotiated terms, authored and served as signatory on license agreements.  He also reviewed and contributed to the development of management agreements.  Skip maintained responsibility for licensor adherence to contract terms and for licensee compliance to contract terms and standards of operation and product contained therein.  Steve Stearns, from 1974 to 1990 in his capacity as hotel General Manager, has vast experience as the primary supervising performer of management contract terms.

Franchise Relations
Skip Stearns served in the two most senior franchising positions for Omni Hotels from 1987-1996.  He has since actively consulted to franchisees.

Industry Standards for Casino & Gaming Operations
As SVP of his consulting practice, Steve Stearns expanded standards assessment practice from hotels to hotels & casinos, freestanding gaming operations, cruise ships and racetracks.  Steve has become a well-known authority on operating, product and integrity standards in operations such as Bellagio, Caesars Palace, MGM Grand, The Venetian, Paris, Bally’s and throughout the gaming industry.