A “100% agave” label tells buyers something about how their tequila was made. Does Mexico’s certification prevent an American court from examining whether that representation is true? The dismissal of the Costco tequila lawsuit gives certification that effect. But, respectfully,
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BuzzBallz v. Big Sipz: Buy the Domain Before Your Competitor Does
Buy the domain before you file the trademark application or announce the beverage brand. Otherwise, your competitor might acquire it, redirect visitors to its own website, and answer your request for its return with “We will offer it to you
Beer Wolf Trademark Lawsuit:A Licensing Deal Bites Back
Beer Wolf looks like the eighties forgot to close their tab. The bandana. The women in bikinis. The unmistakable air of a creature who would explain your own drink to you, then ask whether your boyfriend was around. You can
Before a Brewer Terminates: Lessons from Titan’s Florida Franchise Fight
A beer distribution agreement can promise a 30-day exit without supplying a lawful basis for termination and the whole mechanism and contract can get written in blatant contravention of a state’s beer franchise laws. A recent Florida beer distributor termination
Illinois’ Hemp Deadline: Don’t Let Retailer Returns Become Your Warehouse Problem
Retailer returns could turn Illinois’ November 12 hemp deadline into a warehouse problem for beverage distributors. A store sends back unsold THC drinks, the distributor issues a credit, and the cases wait for the supplier’s truck. If that truck arrives
Coors’ Colorado Fight: What Beer Distributors Should Fix Before a Supplier Leaves
Coors Distributing Company’s Colorado fight with Crown Imports and Constellation shows how a termination-payment clause can help a supplier argue for ending distribution before an arbitrator decides whether the exit violates the law. Our earlier post challenged the suppliers’ reading
Hello Farms Seeks Rehearing Over the Sixth Circuit’s Cannabis Contract Escape Route
When we wrote about the Sixth Circuit’s cannabis contract decision last month, the concern was what the decision allowed a buyer to accomplish: enter a licensed commercial transaction, abandon its purchase commitment when the market turned, and then invoke
What Tequila Brands Should Learn From the 818 Labeling Lawsuit
“100% agave” and “handcrafted” help explain why a tequila costs more. They also give plaintiffs something specific to challenge when laboratory testing or production records appear to contradict the label. The recent 818 tequila ruling suggests that these claims could
Supreme Court Alcohol Shipping Case Cert Denied in Block v. Canepa
Ohio asked the Supreme Court to take up its fight over interstate wine shipping. Today, the Court answered: “Petition DENIED.”
The Sixth Circuit had directed the district court to “declare both Restrictions unconstitutional”—Ohio’s restriction on direct wine shipments from out-of-state
Before You Sign a Distribution Deal: Lessons from Arkansas’s Kirkland Signature Wine Case
When a legislature defines a word, courts should start with that definition. Justice Nicholas Bronni followed that approach in Arkansas’s Kirkland Signature distribution dispute, and his dissent got it right. The majority’s contrary reading allows one producer’s wholesaler appointment to