Young v. Players Lake Charles, L.L.C.

47 F. Supp. 2d 832 (1999)

From our private database of 46,300+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Young v. Players Lake Charles, L.L.C.

United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas
47 F. Supp. 2d 832 (1999)

  • Written by Brett Stavin, JD

Facts

On July 28, 1997, Angelina Rios, Katherine Young, Joshua Young, and Seth Young (collectively, Young) (plaintiffs), who were residents of Texas, were traveling westbound on an interstate highway in Louisiana when they collided head-on with a vehicle driven by Chris Dewayne West (defendant), who was traveling eastbound and drifted over the median into oncoming traffic. Angelina Rios, Katherine Young, and Seth Young died instantly or en route to the hospital. Joshua Young and West both survived but were each severely injured. Subsequent tests indicated that West was intoxicated at the time of the accident. West had been drinking for several hours while aboard the PLAYERS III, a Louisiana riverboat casino owned by Players Lake Charles, L.L.C. (Players Lake) (defendant). West received multiple complimentary drinks while gambling aboard the PLAYERS III. Young brought suit against Players Lake in federal district court, claiming that Players Lake negligently served alcohol to West when it knew or should have known that he was intoxicated and posed a danger to himself and others. Players Lake moved for summary judgment, arguing that the case was governed by the substantive negligence law of Louisiana, which shielded providers of alcohol from dram-shop liability. In response, Young argued that general maritime law provided the substantive law governing dram-shop liability, or in the alternative, that Texas law applied. Neither party disputed that admiralty jurisdiction was appropriate, and the court found that admiralty jurisdiction was indeed proper because the alleged tort occurred on navigable water and the issues in the case raised the potential for a disruptive impact on maritime commerce.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Kent, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 814,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

Here's why 814,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 814,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,300 briefs - keyed to 988 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership