QUESTION
Can I sue the bar for getting my underage daughter drunk?
Asked on Dec 20th, 2012 on Personal Injury - California
More details to this question:
My 18-year old daughter is home from college for the holidays and went to a bar that over served her, last night. She came home EXTEREMELY DRUNK. I am very upset with her but also for the bar that let her in and should have known she had a fake ID.
10 ANSWERS
Ronald A. Steinberg
Are you really serious? Girls over the age of 16, with makeup, can pass for 21. Stop blaming everyone else. It is your daughter's fault. Punish her. Then, look in the mirror. Don't enable her.
Answered on Dec 24th, 2012 at 4:40 AM
Bankruptcy Attorney serving Madison, WI
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Richard B. Jacobson & Associates, LLC
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You certainly can try, but what are her damages other than the usual consequences of one night's drinking too much? Based on what you said, not so very much. And she may have learned a very useful lesson. If on the other hand she was in an automobile accident caused by her getting drunk, the bar or other host might be liable. If she used a fake ID, that may provide a good defense to the bar, particularly if the ID looks authentic. I don't think a court is going to require a bartender, who may have many people to serve, to double and triple-check an apparently valid I.D.
Answered on Dec 23rd, 2012 at 6:50 PM
Personal Injury Attorney serving Charlotte, NC
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Paul Whitfield and Associates P.A.
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Talk to the police or the state ABC officers and see what they suggest you might do the bar was wrong but I don't think you can make any money by suing them. Lawsuits are expensive and your damages are hurt feelings.
Answered on Dec 23rd, 2012 at 6:25 PM
Plaintiff Animal Bites Attorney serving Missoula, MT
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Bulman Law Associates PLLC
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Listen to yourself. Blaming the bar when your drunk daughter lies sleeping. Take her to the morgue so she can see what happens to drunk drivers.
Answered on Dec 21st, 2012 at 2:17 PM
Employment Law Attorney serving Beverly Hills, CA
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Dordick Law Corporation
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While the bar is obligated to check her ID, can you prove that they should have known it was fake? In this instance, the problem lies with your daughter, not the bar. Be grateful that she made it home safely.
Answered on Dec 21st, 2012 at 12:47 PM
Commercial Contracts Attorney serving Boise, ID
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Peters Law, PLLC
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Well, it may have been believable fake ID. She was not harmed. Also, she participated in the event and is probably as much, if not more, at fault as the bar. Your only real solution is to report the bar and the incident to the police. Of course, this may mean that your daughter will be arrested for minor in possession and use of a fake ID. But if you think about it, it might be the best thing you could do for her, since she is a minor and the record will not follow her when she becomes an adult. However, I doubt that you would recover anything from the bar.
Answered on Dec 21st, 2012 at 12:42 PM
Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Attorney serving Syracuse, NY
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Andrew T. Velonis, P.C.
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You should complain to the State Liquor Authority, but there is no basis for a lawsuit.
Answered on Dec 21st, 2012 at 12:39 PM
Criminal Defense Attorney serving Anderson, SC
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The David F. Stoddard Law Firm
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I do not see a case. Since your daughter is an adult, it would be her case, not yours. I do not think she can win a case suing the bar for negligently letting hr trick them into serving hr alcohol. Plus, even if she could win, I don't see a jury giving enough in damages to make it worthwhile. Had she harmed someone else because of her intoxication, that person might have a case.
Answered on Dec 21st, 2012 at 12:36 PM
Appellate Attorney serving Grosse Pointe Farms, MI
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Musilli Brennan Associates, PLLC
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The problem is your daughter, not the bar. Punish and discipline her.
Answered on Dec 21st, 2012 at 12:36 PM
Business Law Attorney serving Walnut Creek, CA
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Hirsch, Closson, McMillan & Schroeder, APLC
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She is an adult. As her parent, you have no damages, nor any right to sue on her behalf. She also has no damages. Again, she is an adult and must live with the consequences of her own actions. If you are truly upset, you can complain to your state's Alcoholic Beverage Commission (as it is known in California) and they may take action against the bar for serving someone underage.
Answered on Dec 21st, 2012 at 11:54 AM