During a private corporate event, the CEO, who is visibly intoxicated and being an aggressive pest to guests, instructs you to continue serving them. You have already cut them off. What is your legal and professional obligation?

Question: During a private corporate event, the CEO, who is visibly intoxicated and being an aggressive pest to guests, instructs you to continue serving them. You have already cut them off. What is your legal and professional obligation?

Answer options:

• Serve the CEO a non-alcoholic beverage and try to de-escalate the situation, respecting their position in the company. ✅ Politely but firmly refuse the CEO, reminding them of responsible service laws, and immediately inform your direct supervisor and the event organizer.
• Continue serving minimal amounts of alcohol to the CEO to avoid conflict and maintain job security.
• Ignore the CEO and serve other guests, hoping they will eventually leave or calm down.

Correct answer: Politely but firmly refuse the CEO, reminding them of responsible service laws, and immediately inform your direct supervisor and the event organizer.

Explanation: The legal obligation to refuse service to an intoxicated person trumps any instructions from a patron, regardless of their status. Serving an intoxicated person carries significant liability for the establishment and the individual server. You must politely but firmly refuse and immediately escalate the situation to both your direct supervisor and, given it's a private event, the event organizer. This protects you, the establishment, and the CEO themselves. Serving minimal alcohol or ignoring them are both irresponsible and illegal.