Ensley v. Pitcher

¶1 Ensley sued Pitcher, a bartender, claiming he negligently overserved alcohol to a woman who crashed her car, causing serious injuries to Ensley. Pitcher asked the trial court to dismiss on the grounds of res judicata and collateral estoppel. Summary judgment had been granted in a separate lawsuit, dismissing Ensley’s identical negligence claim against Pitcher’s employer. The trial court denied Pitcher’s motion to dismiss and certified a question for this court on discretionary review: whether Pitcher’s alleged admissions to a third party, which had been excluded as hearsay in the suit…