Social Host Liability
Most states have enacted laws holding party hosts liable for anyalcohol-related injuries that occur as a result of providing alcohol to minors.This includes injuries to the minor as well as any other individuals whoseinjuries or death resulted from the minor being provided with alcohol. Somestates have more general social host liability laws, which are notlimited to just minors but to anyone who was encouraged or allowed to drinkexcessively to the point where he or she was injured or killed, or causedanother's injury or death.
These laws also hold social hosts liable for property damage related to suchan incident.
To be liable under social host laws, in many states, the host must haverecognized that the guest was intoxicated and should not have been served morealcohol. Such laws also apply to other intoxicating substances. Individualcases are based on specific facts surrounding the incident.
Social host liability laws are similar to so-called
Social Host Liability and Common Law
While common law has generally held that social hosts are notliable for injuries or deaths related to alcohol served to guests (in theabsence of specific social host laws), there are some exceptions.
For example, adults typically have a duty to refrain from negligently orintentionally supplying alcohol to minors. Hosts can be found liable fornegligence especially if they knew (or should have known) the minor would havedriven a car while under the influence.
It is much less common, but not unheard-of, for a court to hold hosts liablefor the actions of intoxicated adult guests as well (in the absence of specificsocial host laws). These cases usually involve drunk driving accidents andcenter around the question of whether the host knew the guest was bothintoxicated and would soon be driving an automobile. Such legal actions areoften filed as negligence claims.
Adult Responsibility for Underage Drinking
Most social host liability laws are targeted toward reducing alcohol relatedinjuries and deaths by minors. Specifically, these laws impose a duty of careon party hosts (typically a parent but any adult who is in charge) not tofurnish or serve alcohol to minors. To "furnish" alcohol isto merely make it available, while to "serve" alcohol is to "knowingly andaffirmatively deliver" alcohol.
The following is an example of how a social host liability law pertaining tominors might be invoked:
Two parents allow their son to hold a keg party attheir house while they are present. One of the guests quickly becomes visiblyintoxicated. Although the parents know the girl is drunk, they do nothing tostop her from leaving the party and driving home. But on the way, she rear-endsanother car, causing the other driver to suffer a serious neck injury.
If this scenario took place in a state with a social host liability law, orwhere the courts allow negligence suits under common law, the injuredthird-party driver could sue the parents who hosted the party as well as the driver that caused theaccident. Typically, the host may be held liable for knowingly providingalcohol to a minor who intended to drive a vehicle afterward.
State Social Host Laws
Laws imposing liability on social hosts for alcohol-related deaths andinjuries vary from state to state, while some states have passed statutes thatexplicitly give immunity to social hosts. Eighteen states have general socialhost liability statutes and nine states have social host laws specific tominors, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism(NIAAA).
States with social host liability laws applicable to guests of all ages:
Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine,Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon,Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessess, Washington,Wisconsin
New Jersey's statute holds social hosts liable for third-party injuriescaused by a guest who is "visibly intoxicated" where "the injuries are theresult of negligent operation of a vehicle by the guest." New Jersey courtshave held that "provide" includes self-service by guests. However, social hostsare not liable for injuries sustained by the guest (only the third party).
States with social host liability laws applicable only to minors:
Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Kansas,Michigan, New Hampshire, Utah, Wyoming
The Illinois statute, called the "Drug or Alcohol Impaired MinorResponsibility Act," holds adults 18 and older "who willfully supply alcoholbeverages or illegal drugs" to minors (under 18) liable for injuries or deathsresulting from their impairment. The law covers both the intoxicated minor andany third parties, applicable to an adult host "who sells, gives, or delivers"illegal drugs or alcohol.