Dram Shop Liability Complaint

DRAM SHOP LIABILITY COMPLAINT

State of New York

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Caption
2. Jurisdiction and Venue
3. Parties
4. Factual Allegations
5. Count I — Dram Shop Act (Gen. Oblig. Law § 11-101)
6. Count II — Furnishing Alcohol to a Minor (Gen. Oblig. Law § 11-100)
7. Count III — Common Law Negligence
8. Damages
9. Jury Demand
10. Prayer for Relief
11. Verification
12. New York-Specific Practice Notes

1. CAPTION

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
COUNTY OF [________________________________]

INDEX NO. [________________________________]

VERIFIED COMPLAINT

2. JURISDICTION AND VENUE

1. This Court has jurisdiction over this matter pursuant to CPLR § 301 and N.Y. Const. Art. VI, § 7.

2. Venue is proper in [________________________________] County pursuant to CPLR § 503 because [Plaintiff / Defendant] resided in this county when the action was commenced. [For a corporate Defendant, use its principal office under § 503(c); if no party then resided in New York, plead Plaintiff's county designation.]

3. PARTIES

Plaintiff:

3. Plaintiff [PLAINTIFF NAME] is an individual residing at [________________________________], [________________________________] County, New York [____].

4. [If wrongful death: Plaintiff is the [personal representative / administrator / executor] of the Estate of [DECEDENT NAME], appointed by the [________________________________] County Surrogate's Court on [__/__/____], and brings this action pursuant to EPTL § 5-4.1.]

Defendants:

5. Defendant [DEFENDANT ESTABLISHMENT NAME] (hereinafter "Defendant Establishment") is a [corporation / LLC / partnership] organized under the laws of [________________________________], with its principal place of business at [________________________________], New York [____].

6. Defendant Establishment holds a New York State Liquor Authority License No. [________________________________], of the [on-premises / off-premises / other] class.

7. Defendant [INTOXICATED PERSON NAME] (hereinafter "Intoxicated Person") is an individual residing at [________________________________], New York [____].

4. FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS

8. On or about [__/__/____], at approximately [____] [a.m./p.m.], Intoxicated Person entered Defendant Establishment at [________________________________].

9. Defendant Establishment's employees unlawfully sold approximately [____] alcoholic beverages to Intoxicated Person over approximately [____] hours.

10. At the time of continued service, Intoxicated Person was visibly intoxicated, as evidenced by:

☐ Slurred speech
☐ Unsteady gait, stumbling, or swaying
☐ Glassy, bloodshot, or watery eyes
☐ Aggressive, belligerent, or loud behavior
☐ Difficulty with coordination or fine motor tasks
☐ Drowsiness or falling asleep
☐ Odor of alcohol
☐ Other: [________________________________]

11. The sale of alcoholic beverages to Intoxicated Person while visibly intoxicated was unlawful under the New York Alcoholic Beverage Control Law.

12. [If minor: Intoxicated Person was [____] years old, under the legal drinking age of twenty-one (21). Defendant Establishment knowingly furnished alcoholic beverages to a person under 21.]

13. After departing Defendant Establishment at approximately [____] [a.m./p.m.], Intoxicated Person [operated a motor vehicle / engaged in conduct] on [________________________________].

14. At approximately [____] [a.m./p.m.], Intoxicated Person caused [describe incident] at or near [________________________________], resulting in injury to Plaintiff.

5. COUNT I — DRAM SHOP ACT (N.Y. Gen. Oblig. Law § 11-101)

15. Plaintiff incorporates by reference all preceding paragraphs.

16. Pursuant to N.Y. Gen. Oblig. Law § 11-101(1), any person who shall be injured by reason of the intoxication of any person, shall have a right of action against any person who shall, by unlawful selling to or unlawfully assisting in procuring liquor for such intoxicated person, have caused or contributed to such intoxication.

17. Defendant Establishment unlawfully sold alcoholic beverages to Intoxicated Person while Intoxicated Person was visibly intoxicated, in violation of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law.

18. The unlawful sale caused or contributed to Intoxicated Person's intoxication.

19. Plaintiff was injured by reason of Intoxicated Person's intoxication.

20. Pursuant to § 11-101(1), Plaintiff is entitled to recover actual and exemplary damages.

6. COUNT II — FURNISHING ALCOHOL TO A MINOR (N.Y. Gen. Oblig. Law § 11-100)

21. Plaintiff incorporates by reference all preceding paragraphs.

22. Pursuant to N.Y. Gen. Oblig. Law § 11-100, any person who shall be injured by reason of the intoxication of a person under the age of twenty-one years shall have a right of action against any person who knowingly caused such intoxication by furnishing or assisting in procuring alcoholic beverages.

23. Defendant [Establishment / Social Host] knowingly furnished alcoholic beverages to Intoxicated Person, who was under twenty-one (21) years of age.

24. The furnishing caused or contributed to Intoxicated Person's intoxication.

25. Plaintiff was injured by reason of Intoxicated Person's intoxication.

7. COUNT III — COMMON LAW NEGLIGENCE

26. Plaintiff incorporates by reference all preceding paragraphs.

27. Defendant Establishment owed a duty of care to Plaintiff and the general public not to sell alcoholic beverages to visibly intoxicated persons.

28. Defendant Establishment breached that duty.

29. The breach was a proximate cause of Plaintiff's injuries.

8. DAMAGES

30. As a direct and proximate result of Defendants' actions, Plaintiff has suffered:

(a) Actual damages including:

• Medical expenses — past and future — in the amount of $[________________________________]
• Lost wages and earning capacity in the amount of $[________________________________]
• Pain and suffering — past and future
• Mental anguish and emotional distress
• Loss of consortium [if applicable]
• Property damage in the amount of $[________________________________]

(b) Exemplary (punitive) damages — expressly authorized by Gen. Oblig. Law § 11-101(1) — for the willful, reckless, and unlawful conduct of Defendant Establishment

(c) [If wrongful death: Funeral expenses; loss of pecuniary support, nurture, guidance, and companionship pursuant to EPTL § 5-4.3]

9. JURY DEMAND

31. Plaintiff hereby demands a trial by jury on all issues so triable as a matter of right.

10. PRAYER FOR RELIEF

WHEREFORE, Plaintiff respectfully demands judgment against Defendants as follows:

(a) Actual compensatory damages in an amount to be determined at trial;

(b) Exemplary damages as authorized by Gen. Oblig. Law § 11-101;

(c) Pre-judgment interest from the date of the incident pursuant to CPLR § 5001;

(d) Costs and disbursements of this action;

(e) Such other, further, and different relief as this Court deems just and proper.

11. VERIFICATION

VERIFICATION

STATE OF NEW YORK )
) ss.:
COUNTY OF [________________________________] )

I, [PLAINTIFF NAME], being duly sworn, depose and say that I am the Plaintiff in the above-entitled action; that I have read the foregoing Verified Complaint and know the contents thereof; that the same is true to my knowledge, except as to those matters therein stated to be alleged on information and belief, and as to those matters I believe them to be true.

________________________________________
[PLAINTIFF NAME]

Sworn to before me this [____] day of [____________], [____].

________________________________________
Notary Public

Respectfully submitted,

________________________________________
[ATTORNEY NAME], Esq.
[FIRM NAME]
[ADDRESS]
[CITY], New York [____]
Telephone: [________________________________]
Email: [________________________________]
New York Bar Reg. No. [________________________________]

Attorney for Plaintiff

12. NEW YORK-SPECIFIC PRACTICE NOTES

Dual Statutory Framework:

• § 11-101 (Dram Shop Act): Applies to UNLAWFUL SALES by commercial vendors to visibly intoxicated persons; permits actual AND exemplary damages
• § 11-100: Applies to knowingly FURNISHING alcohol to persons under 21; applies to both vendors and social hosts

Unlawful Sale Required (§ 11-101):

• Must show a commercial sale, not mere furnishing
• D'Amico v. Christie, 71 N.Y.2d 76 (1987)

Visible Intoxication — Circumstantial Proof:

• May be proven circumstantially; high BAC alone is generally insufficient but is admissible as one factor
• Romano v. Stanley, 90 N.Y.2d 444 (1997)

Exemplary Damages:

• § 11-101 expressly authorizes "actual and exemplary damages"
• One of the few dram shop statutes that expressly permits punitive-type damages

No Common Law Claims:

• Generally not recognized independently from the statutory framework

Social Host Liability:

• NOT liable under § 11-101 (requires a "sale")
• LIABLE under § 11-100 if knowingly furnishing to persons under 21

Comparative Fault:

• Pure comparative negligence (CPLR § 1411)

No Damage Caps:

• No statutory caps on dram shop damages

Statute of Limitations:

• Personal injury: 3 years (CPLR § 214)
• Wrongful death: 2 years from date of death (EPTL § 5-4.1)

No Pre-Suit Notice:

• No mandatory pre-suit notice requirement

Key Case Law:

• D'Amico v. Christie, 71 N.Y.2d 76 (1987)
• Romano v. Stanley, 90 N.Y.2d 444 (1997)

This template is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. New York's dram shop law expressly permits exemplary damages, which is unusual among state dram shop statutes. An attorney licensed in New York should review all filings before submission. Last updated: 2026-04-03.