Documentation Risk Tiers

Short Explanation

Documentation Risk Tiers set review depth before a record is entered, and classification reflects documentation risk rather than the severity of the underlying decision. LOW covers routine counseling and informational records with no evaluative conclusions and no anticipated consequence. MODERATE covers performance records with evaluative language and counseling records that may resurface if the matter escalates; secondary review is recommended. HIGH covers formal disciplinary action, termination documentation, and accommodation decisions, as well as records that will appear in proceedings; secondary review is required. CRITICAL covers AI-assisted investigation summaries without attestation, termination files with unsupported characterizations, and any record in active or anticipated legal proceedings. Tiering keeps review practical by directing effort to the records whose failure carries real consequence, and gives the organization a consistent basis for how closely a record was examined.

Why It Matters

Review capacity is finite. Tiering concentrates it where exposure is greatest, so a critical record is not examined as lightly as a routine note, and review remains sustainable inside existing workflows.

Reviewer Questions

• What documentation-risk tier does this record fall into, independent of the decision's severity?
• Is the review depth matched to the tier (recommended for MODERATE, required for HIGH)?
• Does the record meet any CRITICAL condition, such as an unattested AI-assisted investigation summary?
• Has a HIGH or CRITICAL record received the required secondary or legal review?

Common Failure Pattern

Related JRS Sections