Liquor Liability Expert Witness

Liquor liability is the broad legal framework governing the civil responsibility of any party — commercial vendor, social host, or event organizer — that provides alcohol to another person who subsequently causes injury to themselves or a third party. While dram shop liability specifically addresses licensed commercial vendors, liquor liability encompasses a wider range of scenarios including social host liability, event liability, and cases involving the service of alcohol to minors.

These cases require an expert who understands not just the legal standards but the operational realities of alcohol service — how establishments train their staff, what responsible beverage service programs teach, how management is expected to supervise service, and what the industry standard of care actually looks like in a busy commercial environment.

Ryan Dahlstrom has spent his career in the hospitality industry training servers, bartenders, and managers in responsible alcohol service. He trains service staff beyond any certification required by the state or the employer and has developed alcohol-service policies for venues across the United States. His opinions explain how alcohol service actually operates in licensed venues and whether the practices at issue met hospitality industry standards.