Law Offices of John C. Lane
Call us at: 201-848-6000
Lame Duck Session to Consider Amending NJ Dram Shop Law
In our Summer 2011 newsletter, The Lane Law Letter, we reported on the New Jersey Supreme Court affirmance of the decision in Voss v. Tranquilino. This case permitted a drunk driver injured in an automobile accident to bring a dram shop action against a tavern he visited before the accident, even though he was convicted of DWI. The Dram Shop Act, formally known as the New Jersey Licensed Alcoholic Beverage Server Fair Liability Act, passed in 1987, would allow such a suit. A newer enactment, the Motor Vehicle Insurance Reform, passed in 1997, bars any lawsuit by an injured motorist who is convicted of driving while intoxicated at the time of the accident. The Supreme Court of New Jersey held that the 1997 insurance reform law cannot be read to repeal or amend the 1987 dram shop act. Two dissenters admonished that the court should not rewrite a clear and unequivocal statute under the dubious assumption that the Legislature did not mean what it said.
A bill to clarify that a drunk driver cannot profit from his lack of responsibility is among those included for consideration in both houses of the Lame Duck Session of the New Jersey Legislature (A-4228/S-3028), according to the New Jersey Lawsuit Reform Alliance newsletter. We shall keep our readers advised of the progress of this legislation.
© December 2011, Law Offices of John C. Lane
For comments or questions on this article: info@jclane.com
