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★ Iowa · head & brain

Head & brain settlements
in Iowa.

By Reviewed by Abd Shanti, Founder9 min read

A bar can be responsible when a drunk patron attacks someone. In Iowa a man left with a cranial fracture and permanent brain damage after being kicked in the head won the right to take his dram shop and premises claims to trial.

Facts that decide a head & brain claim in Iowa

Dram shop liabilityA person injured by an intoxicated person has a right of action against a licensee that sold and served alcohol to the intoxicated person.Iowa dram shop statute, as quoted in Pangburn v. Rookies (Iowa Ct. App. 2021)
Deadline to sueActions “founded on injuries to the person” must be brought within two years.Iowa Code § 614.1(2)
Fault ruleContributory fault does not bar recovery “unless the claimant bears a greater percentage of fault than the combined percentage of fault attributed to the defendants”; damages are reduced by the claimant’s share, so 50% still recovers.Iowa Code § 668.3(1)(a)
Seat belt useNonuse can reduce damages by up to 25% after comparative fault, and only with substantial evidence it contributed to the injury.Iowa Code § 321.445(4), in the MyClaimWorth seat belt chart
united states · sister site
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★ IA · reported head & brain outcomes

What Iowa courts have awarded.

Real Iowa decisions and verdicts, each linked to the court record or official report.

  • Pangburn v. Rookies Sports Bar
    Iowa Court of Appeals · 2021
    Summary judgment reversed

    At a birthday celebration that turned into a brawl, Anthony Keckler pushed McKinnon Pangburn to the ground and kicked him in the head. Pangburn suffered a nasal fracture, a cranial fracture and permanent brain damage, and Keckler pleaded guilty to assault causing serious injury. Pangburn’s dram shop and premises liability claims against the bar were dismissed on summary judgment, but the Court of Appeals reversed.

★ IA · head & brain · in practice

What changes the number here.

What actually moves a head & brain settlement in Iowa.

  1. 1

    Look beyond the attacker. An assailant rarely has money to pay a brain injury claim; the bar that served him can, under the dram shop law.

  2. 2

    Criminal convictions help. Keckler’s guilty plea to assault causing serious injury established what happened.

  3. 3

    Premises claims can run alongside dram shop claims, based on how the bar handled a fight it could see developing.

  4. 4

    The injuries themselves were not in question. A cranial fracture and permanent brain damage were documented; the fight was over whether the bar could be held responsible, which is why the summary judgment ruling mattered.

★ IA · statute of limitations
2 years from date of injury

Iowa Code § 614.1(2)

★ IA · fault rule
Modified comparative, 51% bar

Modified comparative, recovery barred at 51% claimant fault.

★ IA · caps

What caps recovery.

Statutory caps that may bear on a head & brain settlement in Iowa.

★ head & brain · same region & fault regime

Compare to like jurisdictions.

How Iowa's fault rule and limitation period compare to jurisdictions in the same US region and to those running the same fault rule for head & brain claims.

JurisdictionFault ruleLimitationHead & brain page
Iowa · you are hereModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injury—
KansasModified comparative, 50% bar2 years from date of injuryKS · head & brain →
MichiganModified comparative, 51% bar3 years from date of injuryMI · head & brain →
MinnesotaModified comparative, 51% bar6 years for personal injury (uncommonly long); 4 years for medical malpracticeMN · head & brain →
MissouriPure comparative negligence5 years for personal injury; 2 years for medical malpracticeMO · head & brain →
NebraskaModified comparative, 50% bar4 years for personal injury; 2 years for medical malpracticeNE · head & brain →
North DakotaModified comparative, 50% bar6 years for personal injury; 2 years for medical malpracticeND · head & brain →
LouisianaModified comparative, 51% bar1 year (la prescription), extended to 2 years by Act 423 (2024) for tort claims accruing on or after July 1, 2024LA · head & brain →
MassachusettsModified comparative, 51% bar3 years from date of injuryMA · head & brain →
MontanaModified comparative, 51% bar3 years from date of injuryMT · head & brain →
NevadaModified comparative, 51% bar2 years for personal injury; 3 years for medical malpracticeNV · head & brain →
KentuckyPure comparative negligence1 year for personal injury (one of the shortest in the US)KY · head & brain →
MaineModified comparative, 50% bar6 years for personal injury, longest in the USME · head & brain →
★ IA · head & brain · frequently asked

Common questions.

Each answer is independently coherent and references the relevant statute or authority document.

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Sources

Checked 2026-09-29.

★ all of IA
Iowa overview

Fault rule, statute, caps, and key facts for Iowa as a whole.

★ national frame
Head & brain in United States

Head & brain band structure and severity tiers at the US level.

★ all 15 countries
Head & brain · everywhere

Cross-jurisdiction comparison of head & brain bands.

★ editorial note

Figures on this page are not quotes for any specific case. For representation, consult an attorney admitted in Iowa. See /methodology, /sources, and /disclaimer.