In a definitive ruling, a Dane County Circuit Court deemed drink specials ban illegal Thursday. Because they engaged in the ban with the city's approval, taverns that participated in the bans in the past are legally immune from punishment, according to the court's ruling.
The court's decision overruled a former drink specials ban enacted in Sept. 2002. The ban was a coordinated effort between approximately 20 downtown bars and Policy Alternatives Community and Education, a campus-affiliated group that aims to curb underage and binge drinking. The bars that participated in the ban did so voluntarily and represented roughly a third of downtown establishments with liquor licenses, according to UW-Madison spokesperson John Lucas.
Lucas added the university supported the ban but was glad to hear the bars would not be subjected to the punishment of a lawsuit.
\Through the lawsuit process, we felt that it was unfortunate that the bars were being sued for what was essentially an action in the interest of student health and public health,"" Lucas said.
Nevertheless, Stephanie Rearick of the city's Alcohol License Review Committee said bars that participated in the ban have suffered.
""They were already being penalized monetarily because they had to pay their legal fees,"" Rearick said.
A lawsuit filed in March 2004 aimed to reclaim losses patrons may have suffered by the lack of drink specials. After that, the ban went through various stages of removal until the ALRC dismantled it. Rearick said the removal of the ban was a good idea, as it applied to only some bars.
""It's better, if we're going to do anything with the drink specials, that we do it uniformly,"" she said. However, after yesterday's ruling, any form of drink specials ban is no longer possible.
