Supreme Court of Texas

The court affirms the holding in Smith v. Sewell, 858 S.W.2d 350 (Tex. 1993), that the language of the Texas proportionate responsibility statute includes claims under the Dram Shop Act. Neither the purpose nor the language of the Act makes a dram shop automatically responsible for all of the damages caused by an intoxicated patron, regardless of a jury's determination of the dram shop's proportion of responsibility. Instead, pursuant to Chapter 33, a dram shop is responsible for its proportionate share of the damages as determined by a jury.

Appellate Information

• Argued 11/30/2005
• Decided 11/03/2006
• Published 11/03/2006

Judges

• Justice WAINWRIGHT delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Justice HECHT, Justice BRISTER, Justice MEDINA, Justice GREEN, Justice JOHNSON and Justice WILLETT joined.

Court

• Supreme Court of Texas

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Oscar H. Villarreal, Villarreal Moreno & Ruiz, San Antonio, Gregory J. Lensing, Cowles Thompson, Dallas, Arthur C. Reyna Jr., San Antonio, Glen Garey, Austin, James E. Rensimer, Markle & Ramos, Houston, TX, Victor E. Schwartz, Emily J. Laird, Manuel Lopez, Shook, Hardy & Bacon L.L.P., Washington, DC, Edward J. Murphy, Beirne, Maynard & Parsons, L.L.P., Houston, E. Lee Parsley, E. Lee Parsley, P.C., Austin, Grant E. Adami III, Adami Goldman & Shuffield, San Antonio, TX, for Amicus Curiae., Russell H. McMains, Law Offices of Russell H. McMains, Corpus Christi, Reagan W. Simpson, King & Spalding LLP, Houston, Mike A. Hatchell, Locke Liddell & Sapp, LLP, Austin, TX, for Petitioner.


• For Appellees:
  
• David Roberts, Wanda Roberts, Garner, Roberts & Roberts, L.L.P., Port Lavaca, Christa Brown, Austin, Cynthia T. Sheppard, Attorney At Law, Cuero, David C. Griffin, John W. Griffin Jr., Houston, Marek & Griffin, L.L.P., Victoria, TX, for Respondent.