Yankwitt LLP aggressively negotiated the settlement of a dram shop (liquor liability) case on behalf of our client, a New Jersey restaurant. The case, venued in New Jersey State Court, Somerset County, involved three plaintiffs who were rear ended by the co-defendant drunk driver with a blood alcohol level of .19, who pled guilty to a DUI. The plaintiffs suffered varied degrees of injury, including one who suffered a traumatic brain injury, concussion, and post-concussive syndrome.
During discovery, Yankwitt LLP uncovered a several-hour interlude between the drunk driver patronizing Yankwitt’s client and the accident, during which the driver went home for a while and then went out again to a second bar where he drank hard alcohol. This timeline proved key to Yankwitt LLP’s defense and settlement negotiation as it was impossible for the plaintiffs to prove the driver had been served alcohol at our client’s restaurant while visibly intoxicated, as required for a dram shop claim. In response to the plaintiffs’ unreasonable demands, Yankwitt LLP offered and ultimately settled the case on behalf of our client for a nuisance value payment to each plaintiff, an outstanding resolution of a high-value case.