Mr. Grossman and his staff took good care me and my family. I highly recommend his services to anyone who has a significant injury from an accident.
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E. McClure
Commercial Vehicle Accident Case
Dallas Drunk Driver Accident Lawyer
Were You Hit by a Drunk Driver in Texas? Our Attorneys Can Fight on Your Side
From a legal perspective, drunk driver accidents are different than typical car accidents for a variety of reasons. The primary difference is due to the nature of Texas liquor liability laws whereby bars, restaurants, and alcohol retailers are held to a high standard with regard to the way that they sell or provide alcohol.
The Texas Dram Shop Act
Many years ago the Texas legislature passed laws that made the sellers of intoxicating beverages liable for the actions of their customers under certain circumstances. This was voted into effect as a means of fairly compensating the victims of drunk driving accidents in the event that an accident did occur, but also as a way of reducing the number of accidents by going straight to the source; the bars that were serving people past the legal limit.
Before the liquor liability rules came to pass, the only recourse that the victim of a drunk driving accident had was to sue the driver that caused the accident. While that makes sense on paper, it essentially created a system whereby companies' financial interests were at odds with public safety. A bar had a vested interest in serving drinks to a patron which would make that patron a lethal weapon who was then capable of going out and causing harm to others. The only logical conclusion was to make the dram shop itself civilly liable so that they would have a vested interest in the safety of others.
What Can a Bar Not do and When are They Liable?
A bar, restaurant, or alcohol retailer has to apply for the right to distribute alcohol, similar to the way that ordinary citizens have to apply for the right to driving privileges. An alcohol retailer is granted this privilege on the condition that they meet certain reasonable safety standards. In particular, bars are required to have a system for the sale of alcohol in order to make sure that all drinks are accounted for and that no patrons are served to the point of intoxication. Contrary to what most people believe, it is actually illegal to be drunk in public in the state of Texas, and if a liquor retailer contributes to that intoxication, they are in effect breaking the law.
However, different people respond to alcohol in differently based on their body chemistry, mass, and experience with alcohol so it is entirely possible that a patron can become intoxicated at a bar. When this occurs, a bar is expected to have a system in place for dealing with that intoxicated person in such a way that ensures their safety and the safety of the general public.
Any time that a person leaves a bar in an intoxicated state, in all probability it is the result of a violation of the rules that bars are required to uphold as part of maintaining their privilege to sell alcohol. By breaking those rules, they are acting in a negligent fashion and are ultimately liable for any injuries or death that occur.
Texas Drunk Driver Accident Cases Require an Experienced Attorney
While the above-mentioned elements may seem fairly straightforward, dram shop cases are anything but simple. You stand virtually no chance of recovery without the help of an experienced Texas drunk driving accident attorney. The major obstacles are: the perception of the jury, strong defense techniques, the strong likelihood of a third party being included, and the insurance companies that are emboldened by recent changes in the law.
Jury Perception
The strength of a civil case is all based on how a potential jury would value the liability and the damages of the case. Good lawyers know that they can adequately explain to juries all of the complex technicalities of a particular case in order to convince them to rightfully award their clients with a fair amount of money. The problem is that juries tend to "not get" dram shop cases. In most of these cases, a drunken person hurts or kills someone. As such, that drunken person typically goes to jail. Juries often see that as justice being served and they are sometimes reluctant to offer further punishment, particularly directed toward the bar.
However, our Dallas attorneys speak the jury's language. We have had numerous successful drunk driving cases and we excel at explaining complex legal matters in terms straightforward enough that juries feel compelled to see that accident victims are rewarded fairly.
Strong Defense Techniques
We represent accident victims only. However, there are many "hired gun" defense attorneys that do nothing but represent liquor retailers in these types of cases. There are only a few defense attorneys that handle these types of cases and this is the only work that they do. With such a rare focus and limited scope of practice, they are some of the strongest opposition that exist in the legal world. This makes dram shop cases too hot to handle for most plaintiffs firms.
But not our attorneys. Our firm has gone head to head with virtually all of the biggest defense firms in the realm of liquor liability law and we have secured numerous legal victories and have made substantial recoveries. We we believe in helping those who were injured by a bar's negligence and we don't let our clients get muscled around by those who defend irresponsible alcohol retailers.
Designation of a Third Party
Most drunk driver accident lawsuits result in the intoxicated driver being designated by the defense as the largest contributing factor to the accident. In other words, they attempt to shift the blame entirely on to the drunk driver. While the drunk driver may very well be to blame in the accident, so is the bar, and an experienced attorney can help make sure that all of the responsible parties are brought to justice.
Ruthless Insurance Companies
The ones who are pulling the strings of the above-mentioned defense attorneys are big, multi-national insurance companies. These corporations have one agenda and that is to pay as little as possible to accident victims. The biggest advantage that they have is that in Texas, a jury cannot be told that there is an insurance policy that is applicable to a lawsuit. In other words, an insurance company can play dirty and a jury will never know about it. Additionally, the liquor liability laws have gradually become more restrictive. This has made these insurance companies bold and they feel inclined to take cases to trial that they would not have taken a risk on in the past. Knowing that they are facing considerable opposition from an experienced attorney is often the only thing that makes these insurance companies settle a case.
An experienced Dallas drunk driver accident lawyer can help you build a strong case. For the past 20 years, the Dallas drunk driver accident attorneys of Grossman Law Offices have fought negligent bars and their insurance companies. We have successfully litigated hundreds of drunk driving accident lawsuits, both inside and outside of the courtroom. We have gone up against against drunk drivers themselves, negligent bars and other establishments, and every major insurance company in the nation. We have the first-hand experience necessary to help you determine the best course of action for your case. Our experience and winning track record are our greatest assets, as insurance carriers know who we are and will often cooperate with us so they do not have to face us in court. If you or a loved one has been injured to the negligence of a bar or other liquor retailer, contact a Dallas drunk driver accident lawyer from Grossman Law Offices and make sure you receive the settlement you deserve.
Drinking establishment liability (Dram Shop)
Dallas intoxicated driver accident
Texas drunk driving statistics
BAC levels & car accident fatalities
When is a bar liable for a drunk driver?
Recovery for passenger who suffered broken leg in a drunken driving accident.
$109,500.00
$41,000.00
$30.00
A young woman lost her life after a bar over served her to more than three times the legal limit resulting in her burning to death in a single-vehicle accident. Witnesses stated that she was so intoxicated that she could barely make it to her vehicle without assistance. Through litigation, our attorneys ascertained the necessary evidence to prove that the establishment provided alcohol to an obviously intoxicated person, thus resulting in her ultimate demise.
$550,000.00
$220,000.00
$25,000.00
Our client suffered a punctured colon and numerous soft tissue injuries in an alcohol-related car accident. The accident occurred as the defendant driver crashed his car into a concrete median. The plaintiff, a passenger in the vehicle, alleged that the defendant driver was over served alcohol to such an extent that he was several times the legal limit. As such, a claim was brought against the defendant driver and the bar which over served him. A settlement was reached with the defendant driver and the plaintiff turned his focus on the bar in question. The case was resolved successfully through litigation. Based on the egregious conduct of the bar and it's numerous TABC violations, the defendant's liquor license was revoked soon after the case was resolved.
$337,500.00
$134,000.00
$3,750.00
Our firm was hired by the minor child and parents of a young man who was killed in a motorcycle accident after being over served alcohol at a South Padre Island bar. The plaintiffs hired our firm to investigate the claim on the basis that the decedent was over the legal limit at the time of his death. In initial attempts to settle the case out of court, the defendants denied liability. Suit was filed soon thereafter.
The defendants initially argued that the decedent never consumed alcohol on their premises. Through physical evidence and deposition testimony to the contrary, we were able to conclusively prove that the decedent had indeed been drinking at the establishment.
The defendants then asserted allegations that the decedent's minor child was not actually his biological child, which would bar his claim entirely. A DNA test was performed and this argument was defeated.
The defendants then asserted the safe harbor defense. Our attorneys argued that the defendants did not qualify for safe harbor protection due to the fact that their servers were not all licensed providers. However, while this element was being addressed, our attorneys focused their attention on addressing the second element of the safe harbor defense regarding the bar's encouragement of the over service of alcohol. The defendants claimed that they would never serve the double-shot Bacardi cocktails that witnesses claimed the decedent drank several of. We sent private investigators into the bar to order the same drinks that the decedent consumed on the night of his death and the very same bar tenders who over served the decedent, without hesitation, served copious amounts of alcohol to the investigators, all of which was captured on hidden camera.
Once the safe harbor defense was defeated, the defendants argued that the decedent's BAC was low enough at the time of his death (as recorded by the hospital) that he would not have necessarily appeared obviously intoxicated to the servers and therefore the bar should not be held liable even if he had been over served. Eyewitness testimony refuted this.
Additionally, our firm's testifying medical expert reviewed the medical records related to the emergency helicopter flight that transported the decedent to the hospital after his accident. She determined that the EMS technicians administered numerous blood transfusions while in flight. Armed with this newfound data, our medical expert reverse extrapolated and determined conclusively that the decedent's BAC was actually in the range of .19-.21 at the time of the accident, though it was drastically diluted by the time he arrived at the hospital, which accounted for the relatively low BAC found in the hospital's medical records. This testimony proved to be pivotal in the case, resulting in a successful recovery for our clients.
$350,000.00
$140,000.00
$40,000.00
(policy limits were $100k) Recovery for wife of a motorcyclist who was killed in a drunk driving accident.
$97,500.00
$48,750.00
$0.00
(policy limits) An incredibly intoxicated driver drove head-on into a vehicle, killing several of the vehicle's occupants. The defendants had limited assets, yet an alternative policy was uncovered, which the defendants argued was non applicable. Under threat of litigation, our attorneys negotiated a settlement for the policy limits.
$300,000.00
$132,000.00
$0.00
(policy limits) Our firm was hired to pursue an intoxicated driver who killed an elderly school crossing guard. The fatal accident occurred as the decedent was escorting a woman and her child across the roadway through a crosswalk. The defendant then sped through the school zone, in an intoxicated a state, and struck the decedent who died on the scene.
The family hired our firm to investigate and pursue the defendant under a wrongful death cause of action. Following our investigation and preliminary vehicle inspection, our attorneys issued a Stowers' demand to the defendants. A significant factor in resolving this claim is that merely days before we submitted our demand to the defendant' insurance carrier, we won a large case against the very same insurance carrier, which was one of several such victories secured against the carrier in our firm's history. Our threats of litigation were therefore heeded and the defendants offered policy limits to settle the claim without the need to file suit.
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Recovered for client injured in a liquor liability accident.
$100,000.00
$40,000.00
$5,000.00
(policy limits) Recovery for pedestrian who suffered a broken leg when he was hit by a drunken driver.
$100,000.00
$33,000.00
$1,000.00