AMARILLO - The Seventh Court of Appeals is allowing a bar in a dram shop suit to designate the plaintiffs’ family friend as a responsible party – a woman who allegedly provided alcohol and marijuana to guests at her house party.
On March 27, 2022, after engaging in a night of heavy drinking at a Lubbock sports bar, “MUB,” a 16-year old minor at the time, drove home on the wrong side of the highway and crashed into an oncoming driver, Angie Apodaca, court records show.
“Fortunately, both drivers survived, but both suffered severe injuries,” states the Seventh Court’s Oct. 6 opinion. “The following year, MUB’s mother filed suit on her behalf as ‘next friend’ against the owner of the bar, Main Street Conference, for the medical expenses incurred in treating MUB’s injuries.”
The suit alleged the bar negligently caused the crash by serving MUB drinks despite her being only sixteen and visibly intoxicated.
“On March 6, 2025, Main Street learned from MUB’s interrogatory responses that she attended a friend’s house party before going to Main Street’s bar in 2022,” the opinion states. “Main Street then deposed MUB on April 22, 2025 and discovered the mother of the friend, Latoya Collins, provided alcohol and marijuana to MUB and the other guests.
“It was also revealed Collins and MUB’s mother were longtime close friends.”
Court records show Main Street filed a motion for leave to designate Collins as a responsible third party, arguing she was responsible for MUB’s intoxication and the subsequent crash.
Both MUB and Apodaca responded to the motion and argued Main Street’s motion was made after the statute of limitations for joining Collins had expired, and Main Street failed to timely disclose Collins as a potential responsible third party, the opinion states.
After holding a hearing, the trial court denied the motion, leading Main Street to appeal the decision.
“It is undisputed Main Street moved to designate Collins as a responsible third party after the statute of limitations expired on potential claims against her,” the opinion states. “It is also undisputed in the record Main Street did not disclose Collins as a potential responsible third party until a year after limitations ran.”
Though the disclosure of Collins was after the statute of limitations, justices found that Main Street had no obligation to disclose her until it had actual knowledge of the facts allowing it to reasonably determine Collins was a potential responsible third party.
“We hold Main Street did not fail to comply with its obligations to timely disclose Collins may be designated as a responsible third party under the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure,” the opinion states. “The trial court abused its discretion in denying Main Street’s motion for leave to designate Collins as a responsible third party.”
Appeals case No. 07-25-00267-CV
