Righi Fitch – The Streak Continues – 22 Trials Without a Loss

October 2025 • Source: Righi Fitch

Richard Righi and Kimberly Sierra brought home a unanimous defense verdict in a dramatic dram shop action in the Maricopa County Superior Court last week. Rick and Kim’s client, which owns and manages several popular themed restaurants and bars, was sued for statutory dram shop by the victim of an aggravated assault. The Plaintiff, who was herself the manager of a bar, alleged that the Defendant bar overserved one of its customers, and that the overservice of alcohol was a proximate cause of the assault. The Plaintiff based her case on the discovery of a bar tab that arguably showed that the assailant customer consumed 14 drinks or shots after consuming two beers with a meal earlier that same evening in the client’s bar. The assailant left the client bar, went home to his apartment, left to meet up with a person he met online, and ended up in the Plaintiff’s bar. Once there, the assailant was served another alcoholic drink, played pool for about an hour, and then became involved in a verbal altercation with the Plaintiff at closing time. Versions of what was said between the assailant and Plaintiff were disputed, but what was not in dispute was the horrific assault perpetrated on the Plaintiff, all of which was captured on surveillance camera. The camera clearly showed the assailant Defendant violently strike Plaintiff, turn, and calmly walk out the exit door.

A later investigation conducted by local police resulted in his arrest, conviction, and subsequent incarceration for aggravated assault. Tragically, the assault resulted in a traumatic brain injury to the Plaintiff, who was knocked unconscious and was unable to brace herself prior to her head forcibly hitting the concrete floor. Fortunately, the Plaintiff was successfully treated by emergency room physicians. In the defense of their client, Rick and Kim were ultimately successful in locating the assailant, who had moved away from Arizona, served him with a domesticated subpoena, and forced him to testify at the trial. Rick and Kim established that a majority of the drinks on the tab were purchased for others, and that the assailant made it home safely prior to deciding on his own to go back out a cause trouble. The jury ultimately found that the service of alcohol by Rick and Kim’s client was not the proximate cause of the assault and rendered a complete defense verdict. Several months earlier, Rick and Kim filed an Offer of Judgment, which will form the basis for post-trial sanctions and a likely Judgment against the Plaintiff. A significant offer was made on behalf of the client and rejected by the Plaintiff. Punitive damages drove Plaintiff’s case, however, Rick and Kim ultimately convinced the trial Court Judge to dismiss the punitive damages claim pursuant to Rule 50.