FEATURED ARTICLE : DRAM SHOP
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GETTING TO THE SOBERING TRUTH OF A DRAM SHOP CLAIM IN ARIZONA
AUTHORS : William Schrank & Linda Tivorsak EMAILS : wschrank @ jshfirm . com ; ltivorsak @ jshfirm . com BIOS : jshfirm . com / WilliamJSchrank ; jshfirm . com / LindaTivorsak
In Arizona , a liquor licensee ( restaurant / bar / club ) can be held civilly liable for injuries and deaths that are caused – wholly or partially – by the over-service of alcohol . This type of claim is referred to as a dram shop claim and can include injury or death to individuals who are harmed by the alcohol-impaired patron , as well as damages or injuries to the impaired patron himself . In other words , dram shop actions can be brought not only by innocent third-parties who are harmed by the impaired patron , but also by the impaired patron .
The purpose of this article is to offer insight and recommendations for investigating , evaluating and defending dram shop claims in Arizona . Although it is not our intention to discuss Arizona ’ s substantive law on dram shop liability , it is important to understand its general framework to give context to our suggested strategies .
Legal Basis for Arizona Dram Shop Law
Arizona dram shop law is based on statutory and common law . A Plaintiff need not allege both or prevail on both . Prevailing on either one will impose liability . The statutory claim is a more difficult standard to meet and requires specific elements to be proven . Proving the statutory elements renders the bar negligent per se . But even if the statutory elements cannot be proven , a bar can still be liable under the less demanding common law standard . Consequently , defense of a dram shop case can ’ t focus simply on defeating the elements of a statutory claim .
Statutory Duty : The statutory basis for dram shop liability is set forth in A . R . S . § 4-244 ( 14 ), and A . R . S . § 4-311 . A . R . S . § 4-244 ( 14 ) makes it unlawful for a licensee or other person to serve , sell , or furnish liquor to a disorderly or obviously intoxicated person , or for a licensee or employee of the licensee to permit or allow a disorderly or obviously intoxicated person to come into , or remain , on the premises , unless it is for no less than 30 minutes to allow for a non-intoxicated person to remove the person from the premises . “ Obviously intoxicated ” means that a person ’ s “ physical faculties are substantially impaired and the impairment is shown by significantly uncoordinated physical action or significant physical dysfunction that would have been obvious to a reasonable person .” In short , a Plaintiff must not only prove a patron was obviously intoxicated , but also that the bar knew the patron was intoxicated and continued to serve the patron and / or allowed him to remain on the premises for over thirty minutes .
A . R . S . § 4-311 states a licensee is liable for damages , injuries and death if : ( 1 ) the licensee sold alcohol to a patron who was obviously intoxicated ; ( 2 ) the patron consumed the alcohol sold by the licensee and ; ( 3 ) the consumption of alcohol was a proximate cause of the damages , injury or death . The statute defines “ obviously intoxicated ” as inebriated to such an extent that a person ’ s physical faculties are substantially impaired and the impairment is shown by significantly uncoordinated physical action or significant physical dysfunction that would have been obvious to a reasonable person . The statute also imposes liability for serving alcohol to a person not of legal drinking age , but that is not the focus of this article . A different liability criteria exists when under-age drinkers are involved .