Legal Question in Personal Injury in California
Liquor at a Company-Sponsored Event
What liability, if any, does an employer have when it sponsors an event at which liquor is served? Also, if the event is noticed to its employees as lasting from, say, 6 pm to 11 pm, and at the event, the employer instructs the venue to keep the bar open an extra hour, does gross negligence attach should a third party be injured while an event-attending employee is dirving home?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Liquor at a Company-Sponsored Event
Such a sponsor, whether an employer or other entity, can be held liable for fairly "foreseeable" personal and/or property damages incurred under such circumstances. This is not strict liability per se, but more often than not sponsor liability will attach, if not for the mere fact that the sponsor is usually in a good financial position to pay for such damages proximately caused by the "event". However, there are defense arguments that could possibly eliminate or mitigate such sponsor liability, i.e. the injured party's conduct was FAR more negligent or reckless than the sponsor's conduct under the totality of the factual circumstances. If you would like a free consultation on this matter, contact us directly hereafter.
Re: Liquor at a Company-Sponsored Event
Sorry, but any employer serving alcohol is asking for trouble and a lawsuit if anyone gets injured during or after the event.
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