Michigan Drunk Driving Accident Lawyers

Does the criminal OWI case pay me? No. The criminal case punishes the impaired driver; the civil case compensates the injured person. A guilty plea or conviction can be powerful evidence, but it does not automatically produce civil recovery. Civil compensation may come from PIP benefits, the at-fault driver, the vehicle owner, a retail licensee under the Dram Shop Act, an employer, or another responsible party depending on the facts.

Who Can Be Sued After A Drunk Driving Crash?

Michigan Drunk Driving Accident Attorneys — Holding Drivers and the Establishments That Served Them Accountable

A family was killed when a wrong-way drunk driver hit them head-on at highway speed. We recovered $2 million for that family. In a case where the driver had a prior OWI, we used the prior conviction — along with the bar's receipts and surveillance footage — to pursue a dram shop claim against the establishment that had overserved him that night.

That is what separates a drunk driving case from a standard car accident claim. When alcohol is involved, there may be more than one party responsible. The driver made a choice. The bar that kept serving him after he was visibly intoxicated may have enabled it. Both can be held liable under Michigan law.

Christopher Trainor & Associates has spent more than 35 years representing victims of impaired driving in Michigan. We identify every source of liability, move immediately to preserve BAC records and surveillance footage before they disappear, and evaluate whether the facts support a dram shop claim, exemplary-damages theory, or other accountability path under Michigan law.

Every case is on contingency. Nothing upfront and no fee unless we win.

Drunk Driving Accident Case Results

Every case is different and past results don't guarantee a future outcome.

• $2,000,000 — Verdict for a family involved in a high-speed collision caused by a wrong-way drunk driver on a Michigan highway. The driver had prior OWI convictions. The case involved traumatic brain injuries and multiple surgeries.
• $1,500,000 — Settlement for a victim who suffered severe spinal injuries when struck by an impaired driver who ran a red light in Metro Detroit. A companion dram shop claim against the serving establishment increased the total recovery.
• $975,000 — Recovery for a pedestrian struck by a drunk driver in a parking lot, requiring reconstructive surgery and extensive physical therapy.
• $750,000 — Settlement for a passenger in a vehicle struck by a repeat-OWI offender, resulting in multiple fractures and chronic pain.

Types of Drunk Driving Accidents We Handle

Our Michigan drunk driving accident attorneys represent victims across every type of impaired-driving collision.

• Head-on collisions from wrong-way driving
• Rear-end crashes at traffic signals
• High-speed highway collisions
• Intersection crashes from running red lights
• Pedestrians struck by drunk drivers
• Cyclists struck by impaired motorists
• Hit-and-run DUI accidents
• Drunk driving crashes involving commercial vehicles
• Multi-vehicle pileups caused by impaired drivers
• Fatal drunk driving accidents

Wrong-way driving and red-light running are hallmarks of severe intoxication. These crashes almost always produce catastrophic or fatal injuries. Our attorneys have extensive experience with the most devastating types of impaired driving collisions and understand how to reconstruct what happened for maximum impact at trial.

Michigan Laws That Affect Your Drunk Driving Civil Case

Understanding Michigan's legal framework is essential to knowing what compensation is available and who can be held responsible.

Michigan's OWI Laws (MCL 257.625)
Michigan criminalizes operating while intoxicated with a BAC of 0.08% or higher. A "super drunk" designation applies at 0.17% or above, carrying enhanced criminal penalties. While these are criminal statutes, an arrest or conviction is powerful evidence of negligence in your civil case. We obtain police reports, BAC records, toxicology screens, and criminal case files and use them to support your claim.

Dram Shop Liability (MCL 436.1801)
Michigan's Dram Shop Act holds licensed alcohol retailers — bars, restaurants, and liquor stores — liable when they serve alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person who then causes injury or death. Social hosts can be held liable for furnishing alcohol to minors. These claims are deadline-sensitive: they generally must be filed within two years after injury or death, and written notice must be given to all defendants within 120 days after an attorney-client relationship is formed for the dram shop claim unless the statutory exception applies. A dram shop claim requires investigating the drunk driver's movements before the crash: bar tabs, witness accounts, surveillance footage from the establishment, and testimony about the driver's observable state of intoxication. When we find it, it can significantly increase the total compensation available.

Exemplary Damages and Accountability
Michigan does not treat punitive damages the way many other states do. In limited situations, exemplary damages may be evaluated when egregious conduct caused compensable humiliation, outrage, or other recognized harm. Drunk driving evidence still matters powerfully because it supports negligence, fault allocation, serious-impairment proof, and settlement value, even when the damages analysis remains focused on compensating the victim.

Three-Year Statute of Limitations (MCL 600.5805)
You generally have three years from the date of the accident to file a personal injury lawsuit. Dram shop claims under MCL 436.1801 are different: they generally must be filed within two years after injury or death, and written notice must be sent to all defendants within 120 days after an attorney-client relationship is formed for that claim unless the statutory exception applies. Even those deadlines are longer than the evidence window, because BAC records, surveillance footage, and bar receipts can disappear within days if not preserved by a legal hold.

Evidence That Makes Drunk Driving Cases

Drunk driving cases are built on evidence that has a very short shelf life. BAC test results and toxicology screens exist in police records but may need to be obtained quickly. Surveillance footage at bars and on the road is routinely overwritten within 72 hours. Bar staff memories fade. The criminal case moves on its own timeline with no obligation to preserve evidence useful to your civil claim.

We send preservation letters to every establishment and law enforcement agency involved within hours of engagement. We obtain the criminal case file, including all arrest documents, field sobriety test results, and witness statements. We review the driver's history — prior OWI convictions, license status, insurance coverage — to understand the full scope of liability. We identify and interview witnesses from the scene, the bar, and the surrounding area.

When impaired-driving evidence and dram shop liability are both in play, insurance carriers and their counsel take these cases seriously from the beginning. We use that dynamic on behalf of every client.

Serving Drunk Driving Accident Victims Across Michigan

Michigan Legal Center represents drunk driving accident victims statewide, from Metro Detroit and West Michigan to Mid-Michigan, Northern Michigan, and the Upper Peninsula. Our 10-office Michigan footprint helps us move quickly on police reports, criminal-court records, toxicology evidence, bar or restaurant records, local video, and medical proof, but this is a statewide impaired-driving injury practice.

Call (248) 886-8650 any time for a free consultation. You pay nothing unless we win.