For those of you who read this blog, you might be wondering where the heck I have been? Am I alive? My friends, don’t try to write a book. I say that in jest, of course, but I have been working on the world’s first craft beer law textbook (under contract with Carolina Academic Press) over the summer and over these first few fall months. It is all consuming of my writing time (well, that and two law review articles). Suffice it to say that I have missed my blogging enterprise. But I should be done with the book soon.
A few updates on my scholarly stuff. First, I just finished my third California Craft Beer Law class at McGeorge. This one went really well and had a gifted group of students. Guest speakers included Ting Su (Eagle Rock Brewing), Mike Kanach (Intellectual Property Partner at Gordon Rees and craft beer attorney), Tom McCormick (Executive Director of the California Craft Brewers Association), and Sacramento’s very own Ken Anthony (Founder and Owner of Device Brewing Co.). Second, I have a law review article coming out with the Gonzaga Law Review on unfair competition and remedies stemming from Big Beer’s and Big Distribution’s market conduct in the near future. Third, I and my Research Assistant (Tom Gerhart) have been hard at work on another law review article concerning predatory pricing and anti-competition in the beer market. Updates on that to come. Lastly, for any law profs reading this, McGeorge has asked me to put on a substantive craft beer law presentation at AALS in January 2020 in Washington DC. Check it out to learn about craft beer law and what McGeorge is doing in that sphere (yes, there will be a beer tasting component hosted by yours truly).
And now some substance from our friends at the California Craft Brewers Association. Good news. The CCBA’s sponsored bill, AB 746, authored by Asm. Jim Wood, passed both houses and was signed into law by the Governor last week. This bill amends California’s Health and Safety Code to exempt brewers from the CA Department of Health’s permit requirements. This helps in two ways. First, every brewery in California will save about $1100 annually in permitting fees and expenses. Second, this bill essentially consolidates public health and safety requirements with local regulations that breweries already must comply with. The result is less logistical hoop jumping and less paperwork. Nice win CCBA.
There is A LOT happening in the craft beer legal world these days. Stay tuned in the coming weeks for a post on the new mandatory sexual harassment training requirements for breweries, diversity and inclusion taking hold, and some insights on brewery on brewery conflicts that seem to arise from the increasingly competitive marketplace.
As usual, Cheers! And let me know what you think.