Must liquor store, bar, or tavern employees actually know the person served is a drunk for the imposition of liability?

A bar serves somebody. The person turns out to be drunk and they go out and they hurt somebody that you care about, or maybe they hurt you. The defense that you hear from the bar that we hear all the time is, “Look, I didn’t know she was drunk. I didn’t know he was drunk. They looked fine to me. No slurring, no repeating themselves, no foaming at the mouth. They looked fine to me.” It’s not a defense. If you knowingly serve a minor you’re in trouble. It doesn’t matter if you say you didn’t know they were drunk. If you knowingly serve an alcoholic, you’re going to be in trouble. It doesn’t matter if you say, “I didn’t know they were drunk.” Why doesn’t it matter? Because you never should have served them in the first place. That’s the whole problem. Don’t fall for that defense.

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