Court expands taverns’ responsibilities
Posted on March 21st, 2008 by beetlbumjl Categories and Tags: Uncategorized, alcohol, Associated Press, Cape May bar, Frederick Nesbitt III, Garden State Parkway, James A. Hamby, nanny state, New Jersey, newarkFrom the Associated Press:
NEWARK, N.J. - Bartenders can be responsible for drunken drivers who visit their establishment even if they do not consume any alcohol there, a state appellate court ruled yesterday in a move that lawyers said expanded the duties of tavern operators.
In a unanimous decision, the three-judge panel found that the estate of a man killed when his drunk friend drove off the Garden State Parkway can sue the Cape May bar they visited before the accident.
The driver, Frederick Nesbitt III, 19, was not served alcohol at the bar, but he had been drinking beforehand with the friend, James A. Hamby, 21.
The AP article continues and detours into he-said-she-said between the drunk driver and the waitress. That aside, the court’s ruling could have some scary implications for business operators. Now, not only will bartenders be required to keep a tab of how much you order under their watch, but they will be expected to gauge how drunk you are when you walked in the door. Short of everyone blowing a breathalyzer before entering any business with a liquor license, how does the court expect this to work? Nevermind that the bartender had nothing to do with intoxication off premises, social behavior has to be the worse metric to use.
4 Responses to “Court expands taverns’ responsibilities”
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March 21st, 2008 at 1:24 pm
Who would have thought that bar tending was going to become a high stress job for people deemed highly responsible?
March 21st, 2008 at 1:35 pm
But bosco, they’re "experts".
March 21st, 2008 at 3:12 pm
They probably know more about drunk people than your average schlep.
It just strikes me somewhat comical that we’re forcing more and more responsibility on them. I have visions of some twenty-two year old living in his parents basement saying, "You’ll see mom. People are going to depend on me, I’m going to be important, I’m going to bar tending school!" I wonder if their pay is going to go up to reflect the risks, like anesthesiologists.
March 22nd, 2008 at 10:58 am
Can the bartenders ask patrons to sign something that waives their right to sue? Or is that a right that they’re not allowed to waive? Slightly off topic: If a man’s estate sues and he doesn’t have any beneficiaries, who gets the money?