• FREE RESOURCES
  • PREMIUM CONTENT
        • SEE MORE
          PREMIUM RESOURCES
  • HR DEEP DIVES
        • Coronavirus (COVID-19) Resources for HR Professionals
          Employment Law
          Labor Law Posting Requirements: Everything You Need to Know
          Recruiting
          businesswoman selecting future employees on digital interfaces
          Recruiting Resources for HR & Hiring Managers
          Performance Management
          vector image of young female making star rating
          Performance Review Resources
          Employment Law
          Understanding Equal Employment Opportunity and the EEOC
          Recruiting
          Onboarding Resources for HR & Hiring Managers
  • CORONAVIRUS & HR

  • LOGIN
  • SIGN UP FREE

HR Morning

  • FREE RESOURCES
  • PREMIUM CONTENT
        • SEE MORE
          PREMIUM RESOURCES
  • HR DEEP DIVES
        • Coronavirus (COVID-19) Resources for HR Professionals
          Employment Law
          Labor Law Posting Requirements: Everything You Need to Know
          Recruiting
          businesswoman selecting future employees on digital interfaces
          Recruiting Resources for HR & Hiring Managers
          Performance Management
          vector image of young female making star rating
          Performance Review Resources
          Employment Law
          Understanding Equal Employment Opportunity and the EEOC
          Recruiting
          Onboarding Resources for HR & Hiring Managers
  • CORONAVIRUS & HR
  • Employment Law
  • Benefits
  • Recruiting
  • Talent Management
  • Performance Management
  • HR Technology
  • More
    • Leadership & Strategy
    • Compensation
    • Staff Administration
    • Policy & Procedures
    • Wellness
    • Staff Departure
    • Employee Services
    • Work Location
    • HR Career & Self-Care
    • Health Care
    • Retirement Plans

Is firm liable for drunk employee's fatal accident?

Dan Wisniewski
by Dan Wisniewski
September 13, 2013
3 minute read
  • SHARE ON

A company celebration turned tragic for this Marriott hotel. How did it happen — and was the company responsible? 
Here are the details, from court papers:
In December 2009, the Marriott Del Mar Hotel held its annual holiday party as a “thank you” for its employees and management. Marriott didn’t require employees to attend the party.
The general manager and the assistant general manager of the hotel decided that each party attendee would receive two drink tickets, and they planned to serve only beer and wine.
Michael Landri worked as a bartender for the hotel, and though he didn’t work the day of the party, he did attend — after he drank a beer and a shot of “Jack Daniel’s” whiskey at home. Worse: Landri brought a flask full of whiskey to the party.
While at the party, a department head brought up a bottle of “Jack Daniel’s” from the hotel’s liquor supply. Landri filled up his flask at least once.
At the end of the night, Landri was either driven home or drove home himself. Once he got home safely, however, he decided to drive a co-worker home who’d become intoxicated at the party.
On that ride, Landri rear-ended the car of Jared Purton at 100 mph, killing Purton. Landri had a blood alcohol level of 0.16. He pleaded guilty to gross vehicular manslaughter while under the influence of alcohol and received a six-year prison sentence.

Who was responsible?

Purton’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Marriott, claiming that Landri’s intoxication came about as a result of his employment with Marriott:

Marriott held the party for its benefit, including to improve relations between employees, improve relations between it and employees, and increase the continuity of employment by providing a fringe benefit. As a bartender, Landri had an above average education regarding the effects of drinking alcohol. Landri became extremely intoxicated at the party. Although intoxicated, Landri was allowed to leave the Hotel and drive.

Marriott countered that it wasn’t responsible because Landri wasn’t acting within the scope of his employment at the time of the accident. After all, the hotel argued, Landri made it home safely. Anything he did after that, they said, was outside of their responsibility.
The court sided with Purton’s family: ” … the party and drinking of alcoholic beverages benefited Marriott by improving morale and furthering employer-employee relations … [and] that Landri was acting within the scope of his employment while ingesting alcoholic beverages at the party.”
Notably, the court found that the fact that Landri had arrived home safely before driving drunk didn’t cut off Marriott’s liability.
The case is Purton v. Marriott International, Inc. 

Don’t let it happen to your company

Though this is an extreme case, you clearly don’t want your employee parties to turn out the same way.
So what’s the best way to avoid over-imbibing employees from potentially leaving your firm liable? Here are five tips:

  • Invite the spouses. Significant others reduce the risk of significantly regrettable behavior. Extra bonus: Inviting loved ones usually means there’s a driver to get the staff member home safely if he or she drinks a little too much.
  • Close the open bar. Freely flowing booze means double trouble. Make it a cash bar to keep everything under control.
  • Hire a professional … bartender, that is. A pro at the bar knows when to cut folks off. And don’t rely on supervisors to chaperone the party. Sure, they should keep an eye on things, but they shouldn’t have to cut staff off the sauce.
  • Cut down on after-parties. Advise supervisors not to attend after-hours shindigs – who knows what stories might be floating around by Monday?
  • Make sure no one drives tipsy. Set up a free taxi service for any employee who might be too drunk to drive. Or you might enlist some designated drivers from among the staff.

Get the latest from HRMorning in your inbox PLUS immediately access 10 FREE HR guides.

I WANT MY FREE GUIDES

Keep Up To Date with the Latest HR News

With HRMorning arriving in your inbox, you will never miss critical stories on labor laws, benefits, retention and onboarding strategies.

Sign up for a free HRMorning membership and get our newsletter!
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
HR Morning Logo
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linked In
  • ABOUT HRMORNING
  • ADVERTISE WITH US
  • WRITE FOR US
  • CONTACT
  • Employment Law
  • Benefits
  • Recruiting
  • Talent Management
  • HR Technology
  • Performance Management
  • Leadership & Strategy
  • Compensation & Payroll
  • Policy & Culture
  • Staff Administration
  • Wellness & Safety
  • Staff Departure
  • Employee Services
  • Work Location
  • HR Career & Self-Care

HRMorning, part of the SuccessFuel Network, provides the latest HR and employment law news for HR professionals in the trenches of small-to-medium-sized businesses. Rather than simply regurgitating the day’s headlines, HRMorning delivers actionable insights, helping HR execs understand what HR trends mean to their business.

Privacy Policy Terms of Service
Copyright © 2021 SuccessFuel

WELCOME BACK!

Enter your username and password below to log in

Forget Your Username or Password?

Reset Password

Lost your password? Please enter your username or email address. You will receive a link to create a new password via email.

Log In

During your free trial, you can cancel at any time with a single click on your “Account” page.  It’s that easy.

Why do we need your credit card for a free trial?

We ask for your credit card to allow your subscription to continue should you decide to keep your membership beyond the free trial period.  This prevents any interruption of content access.

Your card will not be charged at any point during your 21 day free trial
and you may cancel at any time during your free trial.

preloader