Dram Shop Law Cumberland PA
For nearly two decades, the Law Offices of Michael Alan Siddons, Esquire, have provided legal services to individuals, businesses, municipalities, and other professionals.
To better serve our customers’ needs, we have offices in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, and New York. We serve the Harrisburg-Carlisle metropolitan area, Lancaster County, and Cumberland County in eastern Pennsylvania.
Our company has strategically placed offices throughout the region. Because we have the necessary skills and experience to meet your objectives, we have the resources of a large firm.
Services We Provide
Michael Alan Siddons, Esquire’s law firm, provides affordable and competent legal counsel.
Many clients, including the government, banking institutions, Fortune 500 companies, property management firms, real estate developers, and secured and unsecured creditors, have been represented by the firm.
We’ve also worked with debtors, lessors, lessees, buyers and sellers of real estate, equipment, and other personal property, company executives and management, and plaintiffs and defendants in various legal disputes.
The main practice areas of our firms in the eastern Pennsylvania area are:
Bankruptcy.
Personal injury.
Business law.
Real estate.
Commercial Litigation.
Wills.
Trusts and estates.
Taxation.
We are excited about the chance to help you with your legal problems, especially in personal injury cases.
Personal Injuries
Personal injury attorneys can assist people who have suffered psychological or physical harm as a result of another business’s, organization’s, or individual’s negligence. We handle a wide range of personal injury cases, including workplace injuries and product defects.
Accidents frequently result in personal injury claims being filed. Depending on the type of accident, legal issues may arise, and our attorneys will present evidence to support various arguments to assist you in obtaining compensation.
The types of personal injury cases we handle include:
Dram shop cases
Trucking and auto accidents.
Slip and fall.
Dog bites.
We are Cumberland, PA, Dram Shop Law experts who have assisted numerous clients in obtaining compensation for their injuries. Here are a few things you should know about Cumberland dram shop laws.
What is the Dram Shop Law?
Dram shop laws hold businesses that serve alcoholic beverages accountable for selling alcohol to minors or drunk people who later cause injury, death, or property damage to others. The movements that promoted abstinence from alcohol consumption eventually resulted in the early twentieth-century prohibition of alcohol in the United States, which saw the passage of these laws in the 18th century.
Understanding the Dram Shop Law
Dram shop laws allow anyone who is not directly harmed by drunken behavior to sue the business, the store clerk, or the wait staff who served the intoxicated person or minor alcohol. The victim may also sue the drunk person, with both parties potentially receiving compensation.
In this type of dram shop claim, the victim of a car accident caused by a drunken patron may sue the establishment that overserved the patron. Liability determinations take into account common negligence laws, careless behavior, and intentional misbehavior. Some of the most common dram shop claims involve victims of drunk driving accidents.
Is the bar or the bartender responsible for the inebriated driver? It is a common question after an accident caused by a drunk driver. Can they be held liable in a civil suit or charged with a crime? In Maryland, the bartender or bar that serves the patron alcohol is not liable for any injuries or property damage caused by the car accident.
Liability
So, what laws govern the sale of alcoholic beverages in Maryland? Despite the lack of dram shop liability, Maryland has a close second in social host liability. These laws help to regulate the sale or serving of alcohol to people who are under the legal drinking age. You have the right to sue social hosts who serve alcohol to minors. You cannot, however, sue them for the damages caused by the minor.
Maryland also has laws prohibiting establishments from selling alcoholic beverages to minors. They can be held liable for any injuries sustained by the minor, but you cannot sue them for any damages caused by the minor while under the influence.
Duty Of Care?
A “duty of care” is the legal obligation that you or anyone else has to take reasonable precautions to avoid causing harm to others. The majority of people understand this. Furthermore, if you work as a bartender and notice someone becoming intoxicated, you know they should not drive. Either take their keys or stop selling alcohol to them.
This is a fairly common and well-known legal fact, and establishing that someone breached their duty of care is critical to winning a personal injury case. The vast majority of people are aware of this. Our society is primarily based on each of us carrying out our responsibilities in relation to one another, even if it means protecting strangers from potential danger.
Employers should train their employees to recognize intoxicated people and minors and avoid offering or selling alcohol to them. Intoxication is characterized by bloodshot eyes, slurred or slow speech, a lack of coordination or balance, and aggressive, obnoxious, or emotional behavior.
Dram Shop Laws in Maryland
However, when it comes to dram shop liability in Maryland, this does not occur. It has been debated in court for some time, and the judges have consistently ruled in favor of the bars. Because of these differences, if you were involved in a drunk driving accident, you must have competent legal representation in court.
It is best to find a lawyer in Cumberland, PA, who is familiar with the Dram Shop Act to ensure you receive fair compensation for your injuries caused by intoxication. Michael Alan Siddons is one of the most capable law firms to assist you with such a case.
Call Michael Alan Siddons Today
Do you have a legal issue? Does it bother you? Do you need someone who understands and has experience navigating the legal aspects of business, real estate, personal injury, or bankruptcy? Visit Michael Alan Siddons’s law firm.
The Law Offices of Michael Alan Siddons, Esquire is a local and experienced law firm that can assist you in determining your legal options. Please make an appointment at one of our offices if you live in eastern Pennsylvania.