I work at a law school as an assistant. Note that I said LAW school.
My boss asked me to plan a reception and said he wanted to serve
wine. He provided a wine list. I called our caterer and gave her the
list, she then sent me a catering estimate with the wines listed
which I gave to my boss. He looked it over and told me to buy and
serve the wine on my own since that was cheaper. I explained to him
that doing that would be against the law. You can’t just hold an
event wihout a licensed and bonded bartender because of state law and
personal liability. He told me he didn’t believe this and to prove it.
I called our school’s academic affairs office and they told me that if
I served alcohol without a liquor license that the school could be
fined by the state and that as the event planner I could personally
get sued if anything went wrong such as underage drinking or a car
accident by an intoxicated guest. I explained this to my boss. He
told me that I should not have told anyone else, that he didn’t care
if that was the law because it was better to save money (remember,
this is a law school!), and then told me that I should just do what I
am told, whether it is legal or not.
how hard is it to pour wine and keep your mouth shut? and even though you are the “event planner” you can’t be held soley responsible if something happens. You did it at the request of your boss, who requested it on behalf of the school. That means the school would be held responsible.
Try again Casey… pretty much every state has the laws set up so that the _server_ of the alcohol is the primary at fault.. not the school, not the boss who told you to do it. You.
So you serve alcohol, something happens, you’re the one that’s in trouble and you’re the one likely getting fired to “protect” the boss/school.
casey, you’re going to be the type of parent who lets your kids and their friends drink at your house and then get sued by the parents when their kid gets into a drunk driving accident because YOU let them drink at your house.
OP was right. Don’t get yourself held personally accountable because your boss wants you to break the law. End of story.
#1, do you fail to see the irony here? And yes, depending on the state’s laws, the person serving the alcohol can be held personally liable for any mishaps. In my state, even a private homeowner that holds a party can be legally charged if someone leaves drunk and causes an accident.
@Casey you are wrong. They can still be held responsible. Even civily. If something were to happen being the planner they have a legal obligation to follow the rules no matter who asks you to do it. Yes the others would be held responsible too but so would the rule breaker. It sounds like the boss it a jerk and would have throw anyone under the bus to save thier own skin.
what state do you live in that requires a legal bonded bartender? I’ve bartended in Ohio for 15 years and do NOT need a license for it.
Apparently it is pretty hard to keep your mouth shut. Try it once in a while Casey.
Your boss is an ass.
Yes, but the school, and the boss, can point to the “event planner” as the one that should have known the correct procedure.
Casey you have no ethics. Are you actually serious when you say that someone should do something blatently illegal to avoid making waves? That’s how Enron happened. You should be ashamed of yourself. I would hate to work with someone like you. Morals are important in business and especially if your business is training future lawyers.
It’s not hard to, but it’s still not right. It’s illegal. I would not put myself on the line because my boss wanted to save a few bucks. I mean if he really wanted to save money maybe he could change his wine list. There are wines that aren’t hugely expensive that can also be very good.
Actually, the person who serves the alcohol is held responsible in the event of underage drinking, disorderly and intoxicated guests, and car accidents caused by drunk drivers. I work for a place that sells alcohol and both the company and I would get fined a lot of money if I sold someone alcohol irresponsibly–even if my boss told me to do it.
It’s amazing that the people who SHOULD know better are always the ones trying to skirt the rules…
Actually Casey, as a bartender I know the law well. It varies from state to state, but in my state the student would be fined up to $10,000 per under ager. The establishment would be fined up to $25,000 per underager. The law office would probably be sued to pay this fine. Depending on the school’s connection with the law office, they may also be sued. If anyone has any type of injury while being intoxicated, even if it’s off the property of the reception, they can file a lawsuit against all three parties up to 1 year after the incident to pay for damages. If anyone gets killed or immobilized, even if it’s from someone else’s wreckless driving, and their intoxicated, you can still be sued.
Nothing would happen to his boss himself, unless the law office decided to fire him for being an idiot. He told him to do it, but he didn’t put a gun to his head or threaten him with blackmail. We believe in free will in this country, so the student can say no. The boss walks free.
I live in Texas and I have a liquor license, When some one sues you over not having a liquor license, they can sue the place you work and who ever is in charge, and the waiter/waitress that serves the liquor,, Plus he would be fined and could possibly face jail time. I think your boss needs to be fired on this one.. He could have cost the school lots and lots of money. I hope something good came from this.. WOW what an idiot…
Casey do you think, or is this just how you always are?
I was bullshitting the Original Poster just to get some kind of reaction.
It worked well.
haha
I think Casey was making a joke. Damn people…relax!
I almost feel 100% sure I know who posted this, after attending a Law School Graduation Reception just days ago. You did the right thing. And, your boss is a jerk. Don’t worry. Everyone else knows it.
Yeah right casey. You were serious but now you feel stupid
Casey, get with the times. Trolling’s not that funny anymore.
Casey wrote:
> I was bullshitting the Original Poster just to get some kind of reaction.
> It worked well.
> haha
Fools excuse if his stupid behaviour does not have the effect he wants… “Was just a joke, I was provoking, etc et al” instead of saying, “I did something wrong.”
Usually makes things worse. People doing so are usually promoted from fool to something worse.
@Casey – You’re still an idiot.
Zebron…insults are the least intelligent thing a human mind can accomplish.
But why the fuck do any of you care?
I’m sure no one comes here for scholarly reading.
I know I don’t. I just enjoy making people whine and point fingers.
Holy cow! You guys chill. I know Casey and he did that out of light humor and wit to make me laugh! He works just right down the hall from me in another department. Jesus Christ! Man, it really shows that the joke is on all of you if you got so wound up and upset by it.
Casey = Troll. Nuff said. (Not just on this story either)
Also how sad is it that the first person that responded is a friend in the same place as the OP.
How sad is it that you follow him around, Zebron.
Zebron, you sound like quite the uptight and arrogant asshole. Why do you care so much about what other people are saying?
What is the point of characterizing someone on a site like this because of a comment, Zebon. It seems to me that you’re pretty smart. So, I figure that its quite obvious to us that you cannot judge someone’s character based on a simple comment to a funny story. Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr said “The character of every act depends upon the circumstances in which it is done”.
To judge him based on these comments is aiken to judging a comic by a single joke, a person of their visual imparities, or even the oft’ quoted “a book by its cover”.
Be a big person and let the man speak his piece without interference.
i only visit this site to read the comments. hilarity always ensues.
lmao karen, I thought I was the only one!
Of course I read the stories too, but usually the comments are sooo much funnier.
I just like to heckle.
Same with me Kristen! I have it open to the comments section all the time because it makes it easier than going back and clicking on the next one to get in and so on and so on…the comments are usually funnier than the stories!
You could’ve told him to pay for the liquor license first and then you’d be happy to help him save money. Present the option.
Plus, you fail in realizing that just because you work at a law school that the person you work for may not be a licensed lawyer.