The receipt of a dining establishment shows that the customer ordered multiple alcoholic drinks. The patron was involved in a serious auto accident shortly after the incident. A receipt is important for attorneys investigating potential Dram shop liability. The receipt doesn’t necessarily show that the restaurant served a clearly intoxicated customer or that the employees failed to comply with the appropriate procedures. The most revealing evidence could involve what happened between those drink orders.
Understanding the order of events requires an examination of the alcohol service as a hospitality process, not just the counting of drinks after an incident.
A receipt records a sale not the status of the customer
Records at the point of sale can reveal when transactions took place, which drinks were bought and the costs put on a bill.
But, receipts generally will not show how a client behaved when drinking was offered. The receipt will not disclose the drinkers who consumed it even if the drinks were shared, as well as the manner in which the bartender viewed it.
An expert witness who is qualified will assist lawyers in understanding the records and also the surveillance footage, testimony from employees and other evidence that is available. It is important to reconstruct the order of service, without assuming every purchase will tell the entire story.
What is the most employees could actually observe?
The primary issue in all disputes over alcohol-related service is whether staff could have had reasonable grounds to believe that the person was drunk. The relevant observations might include impaired coordination, unusual speaking or speech patterns, difficulties maintaining equilibrium or noticeable behavioral changes.
But these indicators need context. One incident recorded in surveillance footage may have a reason that isn’t related to alcohol consumption. Investigators must also look at camera angles, quality of recording as well as the positions of employees, and if the behavior might have been visible to staff.
Preston Rideout brings experience as a bartender, bar manager, nightclub general manager, and director of bar operations to these evaluations. His experience in operations helps him make connections between the roles and limitations of employees who work in hectic areas of hospitality.
Written Training Doesn’t Always Describe Real Practice
Most alcohol-service investigations involve questions regarding preparation for employees. Was there any formal training for the server-sellers? Were employees taught to recognize the signs of intoxication? Did management outline procedures for refusing additional service?
Although these questions are crucial to the Responsible Alcohol Service, examining just training certificates might not be enough to answer them.
A venue might maintain detailed policies, but fail to consistently implement them. Employees could have followed recognized service practices even if the end result was disastrous.
A review of the operational aspects of the policy includes documentation for training, testimonies from employees, management oversight and actions documented during an incident. It is essential for lawyers representing defense and plaintiffs to recognize the difference between the existence and effectiveness of the policy and the way it is implemented.
Timeline often sheds light on important information
Imagine a client who is served drinks from various bartenders in an event that is crowded. The first bartender may have observed ordinary behavior. Another bartender could serve a different drink following an alteration in shift. Managers could intervene later.
The decisions could appear to be a continuous service when the timeline isn’t reconstitued. When looking through transaction records and staffing plans, as well as video surveillance and incident reports it’s helpful to determine the person who knew what and the time. Records that are missing or not complete should also be identified rather than rewritten with speculation.
Lawful Liability and Industry Practice are Different Questions
Hospitality experts can explain recognized operating guidelines and judge if a venue’s conduct was consistent with them.
They do not take away the responsibility of the court to decide the legality of the liability. There are distinct laws in each state concerning the legal responsibility of retailers selling alcohol.
Rideout Hospitality Consulting provides support to lawyers representing plaintiffs and defense in the United State through case reviews, operational analyses as well as written opinions trials, depositions and other forms of evidence. Its work focuses on alcohol-service decisions and staff training.
The most rigorous analyses are able to explain what the evidence doesn’t reveal.
The effects of alcohol-related accidents can have severe consequences, but the severity can’t be assessed by all the facts.
The attorney must be aware of the information available to him, their limitations, and the expectations of employees under the conditions.
An in-depth analysis of hospitality can separate evidence from an assumption and explains where the venue’s practices matched up with or diverged from accepted standards. This helps courts determine the events that actually occurred instead of relying only on the information that was released in the aftermath.