Unhappy Hour: Key Legal Defenses for Bars and Restaurants

Bars, restaurants, and other establishments in the hospitality industry operate in a high-risk environment for personal injury lawsuits. Provision of alcohol, crowded conditions, late hours, and fast-paced staff interactions create fertile ground for personal injury claims, some of which may have more merit than others. Owners, operators, and employees of such establishments should thus familiarize themselves with some of the most common personal injury claims that may be made against them, as well as some of the most effective defenses thereto. If you are facing a personal injury lawsuit in the hospitality industry, a North Carolina personal injury defense attorney can help you protect your business. 

Common Legal Claims Against Bars and Restaurants 

In the personal injury context, bars and restaurants are frequent targets of the following types of legal claims: 

Dram Shop 

A “dram shop” is an establishment that sells alcoholic beverages to the public. Most states, including North Carolina, have dram shop laws that permit personal injury suits against such establishments if they sell alcohol to a person under the age of 21 or a person who is visibly intoxicated and that person then causes an injury (e.g., a car crash). Plaintiffs pursuing dram shop claims alleging service to a minor must show: 

1. The defendant knowingly sold or furnished alcohol to a person under the age of 21
2. The underage person became impaired 
3. The impairment caused the plaintiff’s injury 

Plaintiffs pursuing dram shop claims alleging service to a visibly intoxicated person must show that the defendant knew the patron was intoxicated at the time of service. 

Premises Liability 

Premises liability claims are particularly common against brick-and-mortar businesses, including bars and restaurants. Such claims may be based on allegations including: 

• Slips and falls (e.g., spills, wet floors, poor lighting) 
• Trip hazards (e.g., uneven surfaces)
• Burns (e.g., hot beverages spilled on patrons) 

Generally, North Carolina law requires owners and occupiers of real property to exercise reasonable care to prevent injuries to lawful visitors upon their property. However, what constitutes “reasonable” care in any specific scenario is highly fact-specific. As such, you should consider speaking to a North Carolina personal injury defense attorney if you are facing a premises liability claim in the hospitality industry. 

Negligent Security

The general rule of premises liability (e.g., slip and fall cases) is that property owners owe lawful visitors a duty of reasonable care to prevent injury. So that would naturally absolve property owners of the unlawful actions of unrelated third parties, right? Not so fast! Negligent security claims are based on the theory that property owners also owe lawful visitors a duty of care to protect them from the foreseeable criminal actions of others. A negligent security claim could arise, for example, after a patron is carjacked in a restaurant parking lot when such carjackings had occurred several times before, and the property owner had taken no steps to prevent those incidents or future incidents. 

Negligent Hiring, Training, and Supervision 

The legal doctrine of vicarious liability holds that employers are liable for the actions of their employees. Negligent hiring, training, and supervision claims can thus arise when an employee’s conduct causes injury. Generally, plaintiffs are successful on such claims only if they can show that the employer knew or should have known of the employee’s unfitness and failed to take action. As a result, negligent hiring claims tend to focus on issues like background checks (or lack thereof), prior disciplinary issues, and employee training. 

Strategies for Defending Lawsuits Against Bars and Restaurants 

While litigious plaintiffs often get creative when crafting theories of liability, bars and restaurants also have a few tricks up their sleeves: 

Lack of Causation

Causation is often the weakest link in a plaintiff’s case, and thus a defendant’s strongest defense. Bars and restaurants can refute causation by showing, for example: 

• The patron consumed alcohol elsewhere
• The injury resulted from intervening, independent conduct
• The nexus between the alleged negligence and the injury is too attenuated

These defenses are particularly effective in dram shop litigation, where the defendant can show that the intoxicated patron imbibed at multiple establishments, thereby making it difficult to pinpoint responsibility. 

Compliance With Statutory and Regulatory Requirements

Bars and restaurants are heavily regulated, and demonstrating strict compliance with them, including North Carolina’s Alcoholic Beverage Control regulations, can significantly bolster a defense. Evidence of compliance could include: 

• Proper identification verification 
• Employee training programs to recognize over-service
• Policies for refusing service 

For more information about how to document compliance with regulations governing bars and restaurants, please contact a North Carolina personal injury defense attorney. 

No Visible Intoxication 

North Carolina’s dram shop statutes require a plaintiff to show that a defendant knowingly served alcohol to a patron who was visibly intoxicated. Proving that a particular employee was visibly intoxicated can be a high hurdle for plaintiffs to overcome, as each person responds to alcohol differently and the line between jovially tipsy and dangerously over-served can be hard to determine. 

Contributory Negligence 

North Carolina is one of only a handful of states that follows the contributory negligence doctrine, which holds that a plaintiff is barred from recovery if they were even slightly at fault for their injuries. This defense can be effective in claims against bars and restaurants, where the defendant can show that the plaintiff may have voluntarily consumed excessive alcohol, ignored warnings or visible hazards, or engaged in aggressive behavior. A related defense is the assumption of the risk doctrine, which holds that a plaintiff is barred from recovery if he knowingly engages in dangerous conduct — such as voluntarily participating in a bar fight, for example. 

Fight Meritless Claims With Help From a North Carolina Personal Injury Defense Attorney

Bars, restaurants, and other establishments in the hospitality industry are soft targets for trigger-happy plaintiffs. If you’re facing a personal injury claim, you need legal counsel with extensive experience working with bars and restaurants to overcome such claims. For more information, please contact a North Carolina personal injury defense attorney at Harris, Creech, Ward & Blackerby. Call 252-638-6666 or use our online contact form.