Incident Reporting

Ops Ticketing Portal

*****UPDATE*****

The Legal Team is pleased to announce that the Ops Ticketing Portal has moved to ServiceNow! Beginning on October 12, 2021, please submit your requests for assistance through ServiceNow.   Not all tickets require a response from the Legal Department! If the ticket requires a response, the Legal Department will respond to the ticket as soon as possible.

You can access the Ops Ticketing Portal by going to ServiceNow > Service Catalog > Legal.

If you have an open ticket in the Operations Ticketing System (“JIRA”), you will continue to work with the Legal Team through JIRA until informed otherwise. For all incidents on or after October 12, 2021, the Legal Team will close all new tickets submitted to JIRA ticket and ask that you resubmit the issue through Service Now.

When you reach the Legal catalog on ServiceNow, you will have options depending on the type of item you wish to raise with the Legal Team:

  • Incident Report
    • Use this ticket type to get the Legal Team’s assistance with any incidents at or around the property including, but not limited to, issues involving personal injury, property damage, criminal activity, lease violations, resident disputes, slip and falls, vandalism, and pet and/or animal issues. All incidents involving damage to Essex property must be reported here.
  • Reasonable Accommodation Requests
    • Use this ticket type for all reasonable accommodation requests from our residents, guests, vendors, and anyone else who might make such request. Resident requests for emotional support animals (“ESAs”) go here!
  • Service of Legal Documents
    • Use this ticket type to alert the Legal Team that you have received legal documents such as a complaint, a demand letter, a subpoena, small claims or a warrant. Service of legal documents associated with an existing incident report must be added to the existing ticket. For example, if you have an existing ticket for a slip and fall, and then receive a demand letter about that issue, upload the demand letter to the existing ticket.
  • Government Notices / Letters
    • Use this ticket type to alert the Legal Team that a property has received a notice or letter from the local, state, or federal government. For example, a notice from a city housing department or request for an easement from a public utility.
  • HOA/COA Issues
    • Use this ticket type to request help from the Legal Team with Homeowners Association (“HOA”) and/or Condominium Owners Associations (“COA”). For example, a request by an HOA for access to a shared amenity.

When do I submit an ServiceNow Ticket?

All tickets should be entered into ServiceNow within 24 hours  of issue that gives rise to the need for a ticket. If you have a property operations related question or issue for the Legal Team, it likely belongs in ServiceNow! If you are unsure whether you should submit a ticket, consult your supervisor.

As a reminder, there will be urgent issues at the properties that warrant alerting the Legal Team directly before or in conjunction with submitting a ticket. For example, a major fire occurs at a property, we receive a government notice with a compliance date set for the next day, or there is an ongoing safety issue at the property. For those issues, please make sure you contact legalops@essex.com. Of course, in case of an emergency, always contact 911 first.

October 27, 2021