Advertisement

Are Studios and Networks Liable if Actors or Crew Contract COVID-19 on Set?

Studios, networks and production companies are figuring out ways to bring cast and crew back onto film and TV sets safely, but ramping up production too early could pose a risk to everyone, as standard insurance policies won’t provide much protection for either companies or employees. According to multiple experts in the employment law and liability field, studios and networks are required to uphold safe working environments for employees — but can’t necessarily be held liable if an employee falls ill, given that it’s extremely difficult to prove they contracted the virus at the workplace as opposed to someplace else. “It’s going to be difficult in a workplace scenario of an employee to say with admissible evidence that’s required in court that they contracted COVID-19 on their job unless they can show that they are social distancing in every other aspect,” Kent J. Schmidt, a partner at the international law firm Dorsey & Whitney who specializes in business litigation, told TheWrap. For most productions, everyone from the cast to the crew to the producers are absorbing some risk returning to work in the midst of a pandemic. “It’s a risk to the employee coming back; it’s a risk for the...

Read original story Are Studios and Networks Liable if Actors or Crew Contract COVID-19 on Set? At TheWrap