Fusco v. Commercial Union Insurance Co., No. 118744 (Dec. 11, 2000)

**Fusco v. Commercial Union Insurance Co.: Court Rules Liquor Store Not Liable for Customer's Actions** This case involved a person who was injured by someone who had purchased alcohol from a liquor store called The Packy, Inc. The injured person sued the store for negligence, arguing that the store should be held responsible for selling alcohol to the person who later caused the injury. The court sided with the liquor store and dismissed the negligence claim. The judge ruled that the store had no legal duty to protect the injured person because that person was not a "foreseeable victim" of the store's decision to sell alcohol to an adult customer. In other words, the court found that a reasonable liquor store owner could not have predicted that selling alcohol to this particular customer would lead to this specific person getting hurt. **What this means for workers:** This ruling reinforces that businesses generally aren't responsible for the unforeseeable actions of their customers after they leave the premises. However, this case specifically dealt with alcohol sales to adults. Workers should know that employers may still have duties to protect employees and customers from foreseeable risks, and different rules may apply when serving alcohol to minors or visibly intoxicated people.