William Langle, Jr. v. Walter Kurkul, Sr., William Kurkul, Walter Kurkul, Jr. and Gary Kurkul

Summary

The Court affirmed dismissal of the plaintiff’s complaint because an intoxicated person injured by his own consumption of alcohol has no cause of action under Vermont’s Dram Shop Act, and the Court declined to recognize a common-law negligence duty owed by a social host to an intoxicated adult guest injured in a non-driving accident. The Dram Shop Act protects third persons injured by an intoxicated person but does not provide a remedy to the imbiber, and the alleged social-host duty lacked a compelling public-policy basis on these facts. Justice Peck, concurring, agreed with the result but objected to the majority’s discussion of issues he viewed as hypothetical, while Justice Gibson, dissenting, would have allowed amendment of the complaint to allege circumstances supporting a duty.