Mowell v. Marks

A question remained as to whether the defendants furnished alcohol to the plaintiff's deceased minor child within the meaning of O.C.G.A. § 51-1-18 a-which grants custodial parents a right of action against any person who sells of furnishes alcoholic beverages to the parent's underaged child for the child's use without the parent's permission.

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The trial court granted summary judgment to Rosanne B. Marks, Benjamin Nelson, and Britt Wayne Oxford on Sherry J. Mowell’s claim that Marks, Oxford, and Nelson furnished alcoholic beverages to Mowell’s underage daughter, Kirby, who died in a single car collision while trying to drive home from a party at Marks’s home at which alcohol was served.1 Mowell’s claim is based on OCGA § 51-1-18 a, which grants custodial parents a right of action against any person who sells or furnishes alcoholic beverages to the parent’s underage child for the child’s use without the parent’s permission. Mowell asserts that the trial court erred because i there was a genuine issue of fact with regard to the defendants’ liability under OCGA § 51-1-18 a and ii Mowell could recover damages. We agree and reverse. 1. On appeal of a grant of summary judgment, we review the evidence de novo and determine if the trial court erred in concluding that no genuine issue of material fact remains and that the party was entitled to judgment as a matter of law. See OCGA § 9-11-56 c; Rubin v. Cello Corp. , 235 Ga. App. 250 510 SE2d 541 1998. “Summary judgment is appropriate when the court, viewing all the facts and evidence and reasonable inferences from those facts in a light most favorable to the non-movant, concludes that the evidence does not create a triable issue as to each essential element of the case. Lau’s Corp. v. Haskins , 261 Ga. 491 405 SE2d 474 1991.” Citation and punctuation omitted. Id. at 251.

So viewed, the evidence shows that on the evening of August 11, 2000, sixteen-year-old Kirby drove to Marks’s home to attend a party hosted by Marks’s sixteen-year-old daughter, Jessica, for Jessica’s high school friends. Oxford and Nelson, who were also minors, brought two kegs of beer to the party, and they made the beer available to anyone who attended.

Mowell v. Marks

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