A judge has ruled that Alan Berger, the New Jersey man who was extremely intoxicated and struck by a car while crossing a busy highway, cannot sue the Greenwich Village bar he was at that night for his injuries. Wicked Willy’s, located on Bleeker Street, was hosting a beer pong tournament that night and was providing patrons playing the game with unlimited pitchers of beer without monitoring the consumption.  Beer pong is a fast paced drinking game in which two teams try to throw or bounce ping pong balls into cups of beer, if a shot is made the beer is drank by a player on the opposite team. Due to its fast pace, players tend to become very intoxicated, even more so after playing for a prolonged period of time.

On the night of the accident in June 2009, Berger played the game for 3 ½-hours with friends before leaving Wicked Willy’s and boarding a bus back to New Jersey. After the bus ride, Mr. Berger was still so highly intoxicated that he attempted to cross the busy Highway-9 and was hit by a car traveling 50 miles per hour. Berger suffered severe injuries including a broken hip, leg and foot, tears in both knees and a lacerated liver. At the hospital, nearly four hours after leaving the bar, his blood alcohol content was .26 which is more than three times the legal limit. The lawsuit charged that the bar should have been monitoring the games to make sure players weren’t getting “visibly drunk”.

In the decision, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Lucy Billings threw out Berger’s lawsuit against the defendant bar citing that he had signed up for the drinking game of his own free will. Billing’s wrote: “Despite the game tables, cups and alcohol [that the] defendant bar made available to plaintiff and other bar patrons without serving the alcohol or monitoring its consumption, plaintiff voluntarily engaged in the drinking game” and “consumed alcohol to the point of diminished capacity,”. The Supreme Court Justice found that beer pong players are playing at their own risk and that the bar had “no duty” to warn players of the risks involved with playing or monitor their alcohol consumption during the games. The court’s ruling upholds that under state law bars can be held accountable for drunken patrons injuring other people, but they are not necessarily responsible for those who injure themselves.

If you or someone you know has been seriously injured due to someone else’s negligence, you should immediately seek advice from a personal injury lawyer that is experienced. For a free consultation with such an attorney, complete the form to the left or call 212-566-1000. Based in New York City, Sullivan & Brill, LLP represents clients throughout the United States, as well as in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, Staten Island, Nassau County, Suffolk County, Westchester County and other upstate New York counties.