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Ohio Dram Shop Laws
If you were injured because another person was intoxicated, an Ohio dram shop lawyer at Kisling, Nestico & Redick can help you find out whether the bar, restaurant, or host who served them shares the blame. Under Ohio’s dram shop liability, an establishment or other individual may be liable for your injuries because they served, sold, or gave alcohol to the intoxicated person.
Not every drunk driving crash qualifies for a dram shop claim. Our Ohio drunk driving accident lawyer team can still pursue the driver. To find out whether you can file a dram shop claim against a restaurant, bar, club, or homeowner, you should have an experienced attorney evaluate your case and pursue maximum compensation. To talk with an experienced dram shop attorney, call 1-800-HURT-NOW or submit your information online to request a free consultation.
Why Is It Called a Dram Shop Law?
Many of our clients are curious as to why this law is known as a dram shop law or act. In the past, a dram shop was a bar, tavern, or other establishment that served alcoholic beverages. Modern laws have simply retained an older, unique name.
When Can You Sue a Bar or Restaurant in Ohio?
Under certain circumstances, Ohio law allows you to file a civil lawsuit against a business or an individual host who serves alcohol to a person who then causes you harm in an alcohol-related accident. This often means a drunk driving accident. However, the law is not limited to DUI crashes. You should talk with a lawyer about the Ohio dram shop act if you were physically or sexually assaulted by an intoxicated individual.
The law states that generally, no one who is injured by an intoxicated person has a legal cause of action against any liquor permit holder or employee of a liquor permit holder who sold alcohol to the intoxicated person. In other words, there is no Ohio law that requires a business to prevent a drunk person from driving or leaving the bar and acting in some other harmful way. However, there are important exceptions to this rule. In general terms, a bar, restaurant, or store can be held responsible when it knowingly served someone who was noticeably intoxicated, or knowingly sold alcohol to a minor, and that person’s intoxication caused the harm. A business can also be responsible for its own negligence when someone is hurt on its premises or in its parking lot.
Injuries on the Bar’s Premises
You may have a cause of action if:
- Your injury or loved one’s death occurred on the liquor permit holder’s premises or in a parking lot controlled by the liquor permit holder or an employee of the permit holder; and
- Your injuries or loved one’s death was proximately caused by the permit holder or its employee’s negligence.
Injuries Off the Premises, Including Drunk Driving Crashes
Additionally, you can file a lawsuit against the liquor permit holder if:
- Your injury or loved one’s death was directly and proximately caused by an intoxicated person’s negligent conduct;
- Your injury or loved one’s death occurred off the permit holder’s premises; and
- The permit holder or an employee knowingly sold an intoxicating beverage to a visibly intoxicated or underage individual.
Whether or not your circumstances fall into one of these exceptions can be confusing. We recommend speaking with our Ohio Dram Shop lawyers as soon as possible to determine if you can sue the business that sold the intoxicated person alcohol.
Dram Shop Liability Examples
Examples when a restaurant, bar, club, or other business may be liable for your injuries include:
- On the business’s premises: You are enjoying a night out with friends at a neighborhood bar. You notice that a man has become intoxicated, loud, and belligerent. That man continues to be served alcohol and eventually starts a fight. You are pushed to the ground, and you strike your head on a table during the fall, causing a concussion. You may hold the bar owner liable for your injuries if you can show you were injured on the property and the bar was negligent for serving an intoxicated patron.
- Off the business’s premises: Now, consider the fight does not take place, and instead, you say goodbye to your friends and begin to walk home. As you cross the street a few blocks away, the man from the bar blows through a stop sign and strikes you with his car. You can file a dram shop lawsuit against the bar if you can prove the bartender knowingly served the man when he was visibly intoxicated or knowing that the man was underage.
Never hesitate to call and speak to our dram shop attorneys at Kisling, Nestico & Redick. We are here to listen to your circumstances and advise you of your legal rights. You may have a legal claim against only the intoxicated individual. However, if we find signs that the business providing the intoxicated person with alcohol was negligent, we may recommend filing a lawsuit under Ohio’s dram shop law.
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