Articles & Newsletter

Yuengling and Boening Settle Case

Court Hands Down Favorable Distributor Ruling in NY Case

Unintentional Liabilities Arbitration of Brewer & Wholesale Disputes

Clare Rose, NY A-B house, files suit against InBev and Manhattan Beer

Upcoming InBev Consolidations Led to Legal Fireworks in Metro NY

United States District Court For The Northern District of Illinois Eastern Division

Direct Shipping: Is The
Three Tier System at Risk?

Consolidation: An Offer You Can
Refuse -- But May Want to Accept

Distributors: Know Your Rights
in Brewery Consolidations

Product Warranties Warrant
Risk Management Strategies

Reducing Liabilities Associated
With Product Warranties

Federal Court Applies 21st Amendment to Prevent Circumvention of State
Beer Wholesaler Statute

Restrictive Covenants In Employment And Sale Of Business Contexts: Protecting Your Interests

Direct Shipping Part II: A Big Victory For Distributors In The Second Circuit

Overcoming Adverse Con Tractual Terms: Does Action Speak Louder Than Words?

Arbitration Of Brewer Wholesaler Disputes: The Good The Bad And The Ugly

Employee Discrimination Claims: A Handbbok For Creating A Safe Harbor For Employees

Miller’s Proposed Amendment: The Coor’s Conflict Is Only The Tip Of The Iceberg

Sub-Distributors Beware: You May Not Have The Statutory Protection You Think You Have

Direct Shipping Part III: The Supreme Court Strikes Down Bans On Direct Shipping And A Staunch Supporter Of The Twenty-First Amendment Retires

Bankrupt Brewers And Distributers Effect On Distributions

Modelo V. Gambrinus: Performance Does Not
Count

Barton Gets (Half Of) The East

Sub-Distribution Rights Revisited

Miller & Coors: Whose Consolidation Will It Be?

Miller & Coors II: To Sell Or Not To Sell (That Is The Question)

The Miller Coors Agreement: Who Will Be The Master Of Your Domain?

COURT HANDS DOWN FAVORABLE DISTRIBUTOR RULING IN NY CASE

"BBC Beer Business Daily" February 8, 2011

In the case of Amtec International of NY Corp v Beverage Alliance, importer Beverage Alliance terminated Amtec International of NY Corp and asserted that it was not a successor brewer under New York law because it did not purchase the import rights from the prior importer, but rather from the overseas brewery, Carlsberg Okocim, SA, itself. The Court, however, disagreed, and ruled in favor of the beer distributor, that an importer qualified as a "successor brewer" under the statute, and thus could not terminate its wholesaler without "good cause" even though the successor importer did not acquire its import rights from the prior importer.

In its decision, the Court stated that "[i]mposing the brewer's obligations on the intermediary shields the wholesaler from arbitrary termination." In doing so the Court indicated it was upholding the intent of New York's legislature to "level the playing field between brewers and distributors."

According to Amtec representation Ettelman & Hochheiser P.C., the Court also strengthened New York's franchise law in three ways: by ruling that the law "clearly covers non-written agreements"; that it "may not be superseded by contract"; and that "beer distributors tend to become associated with the brands they distribute and that a distributor's investment in the brand generates 'good will.'"

©2011 BBD Beer Business Daily