Over a century ago, the United States enacted laws that punished businesses for selling alcohol to minors and to those people who are visibly intoxicated by alcohol. The businesses would also be held responsible for damages caused by either the intoxicated person or the minor.
Serving Alcohol to a knowingly intoxicated person
If a bar or restaurant serves alcohol to a person that is visibly intoxicated, that establishment can be responsible for the damages later caused by that intoxicated person. For example, if a person goes to a bar and drinks so much that he becomes visibly intoxicated, and the bar keeps serving him more alcoholic beverages, that bar can be responsible for the damages later caused by that person. Dangerous situations caused by an intoxicated person frequently involves drunk drivers causing car wrecks. If that drunk driver was served alcohol while visibly intoxicated at a bar or restaurant, then that bar or restaurant could be responsible for the damages caused to the injured person in the car wreck.
Serving Alcohol to those under the age of 21
If a bar or restaurant serves alcohol to a minor under the age of 21, and then that minor is injured because of being intoxicated, the minor can sue the bar or restaurant that served him or her the alcohol. A classic example would be where an 18 year old goes to a bar and is served alcohol. Thereafter, the minor gets in a bicycle wreck on his ride home and is injured. The minor would be allowed to hold responsible the bar that served him the alcohol.
If you have been injured by a drunk driver, please contact the Oklahoma and Arkansas car accident lawyers at Carr and Carr Attorneys. We have offices in Tulsa, Oklahoma City and an office in Northwest Arkansas in Springdale, Arkansas
