The receipt of a restaurant shows that the patron ordered several alcoholic drinks. A few hours later, the customer is involved in a fatal traffic accident. The receipt could be useful to an attorney who is investigating potential liability for a Dramshop. The receipt doesn’t necessarily demonstrate that the establishment served a clearly drunk customer or that employees did not comply with the appropriate procedures. It’s possible that the evidence is more compelling when you consider what happened in between drinks.
To understand this sequence, it is crucial to understand alcohol service as a hospitality operation, not only counting beverages following an event.
A Receipt Records a Sale not a customer’s condition
The records at the point of sale can reveal when transactions occurred, which beverages were purchased, and the method of assigning charges to a tab.
A receipt is not able to reveal the behavior of a person when served a drink. The receipt might not show the person who consumed each drink in the event that drinks were shared, or what the bartender saw.
A skilled Expert Witness can help attorneys interpret these records alongside video surveillance, employee statements and other evidence. It is essential to reconstruct the process of service, but not assuming every purchase will tell the whole story.
What are the things employees can actually observe?
The most important issue in alcohol-related disputes is whether staff had reason to suspect the patron was intoxicated. These could be evidence of diminished coordination, atypical speaking, difficulty maintaining equilibrium, or observable behavioral changes.
But these indicators do require context. A single incident captured on surveillance footage could provide an explanation that is not connected to drinking alcohol. Investigators must also look at camera angles, recording quality as well as the positions of employees, and whether particular behavior would have been seen by staff members.
Preston Rideout brings experience as a bartender, bar manager, nightclub general manager, and director of bar operations to these evaluations. The operational knowledge he has gained helps him make connections between the obligations and limitations of those who work in hectic hospitality settings.
Written Training Doesn’t Always Describe Real Practice
Most alcohol-service investigations involve concerns about the preparation of employees. Does the establishment offer seller-server training to its employees? Did the establishment educate employees to identify signs of intoxication? Have managers explained to employees the process for refusing additional service?
These questions are central to responsible alcohol service, however the review of training certificates alone might not be able to answer these questions.
The place may have guidelines implemented, but fail to enforce them consistently. Employees might have adhered to recognized service practices even if the final result was tragic.
A review of operations considers the information on training materials as well as employee testimony. The review also examines the oversight of management as well as the actions that were documented during the incident. It is important for both plaintiffs’ and defense counsel to discern between the existence of policy and the implementation of it.
Timeline can help answer important issues
Consider a client who is served by several bartenders at the same time during the course of a busy evening. The first employee might have seen a typical behavior. Another bartender could have served a second drink after an alteration in shift. Managers could intervene later.
These decisions may appear as an ongoing process when the timeline isn’t rebuilt. Examining all the information, including transaction records and schedules of staffing, as well surveillance footage and incident reports together can help clarify who was responsible and for what. It is better to identify any missing footage or uncomplete documents than relying on speculative speculation.
Legal Liability and Industry Practice are two distinct issues
Hospitality professionals can explain and evaluate if a venue is following recognized operating procedures.
The court still has the obligation of determining the legal liability. Dram shop laws differ among states, including the specific circumstances where alcohol suppliers could face civil claims.
Rideout Hospitality Consulting provides support to defense attorneys and plaintiffs in the United States through case reviews, operational analyses, written opinions trials, depositions and other types of evidence. Its activities include alcohol-related management, decision making, training for staff, managerial practices, and other related hospitality operations.
The most thorough analysis clarifies what the evidence doesn’t show
An incident involving alcohol could be devastating, but the severity of the result can’t be determined by the prior facts.
The attorney must be aware of the available records along with their limitations, as well as the expectations of employees under the conditions.
An analysis of hospitality is a thorough way to distinguish assumptions from actual actions and determine whether the venue practices are in line with accepted standards or not. This distinction allows courts to evaluate what occurred instead of having to rely on only what was discovered after the fact.