In a world where it seems every other startup wants to be known as the “Uber for _______,” call these companies the “Ubers for booze.” Tap an app on your phone, and have beer, wine or liquor delivered to your door by the likes of Ultra, Klink, and new entrant BrewDrop, which just launched in […]
Read more...Restaurant Law Blog
New Maryland Laws Loosen Distribution Rules for Craft Beer and Small Breweries
Several new laws were passed in the recent Maryland legislative session that affect how small brewers may sell their products to consumers in the state. Generally speaking, sales of alcoholic beverages in the United States are funneled through a “three tier” system: producers (i.e. brewers, winemakers, and distillers) sell to wholesalers; wholesalers sell to retailers; […]
Read more...New Liquor License Laws — Montgomery County
This will be the first of what I hope will be several posts on interesting new laws that came out of the 2014 Maryland legislative session. This post concerns new alcoholic beverage licensing laws in Montgomery County, Maryland. Many of these new laws were the product of the County’s Nighttime Economy Task Force, which was […]
Read more...Legislation Moving Forward to Remove Liquor License Residency Requirements
A few weeks ago, I wrote a post here about the possibility that counties in Maryland may consider removing the requirement that liquor licenses be held by at least one resident of the county that issues it. Shortly thereafter, the blog BethesdaNow picked up on the story and interviewed me about whether that might be […]
Read more...TTB Backlog for Breweries Highlights Need to Get Applications Done Right the First Time
The federal Alcohol Tobacco Tax & Trade Bureau (TTB) announced earlier this month that, as of the end of 2013, there were over 3700 active brewer’s notices on file with the TTB. A federal brewer’s notice is required to operate a brewery and sell beer in interstate commerce. That number represents a 12% increase over […]
Read more...Bethesda Apartment Building Construction Causing Closures, Spawning Lawsuits
In the last two years, the Woodmont Triangle area of downtown Bethesda has seen a building boom in high-rise luxury apartment buildings. Construction of one of those buildings, however, appears to be taking its toll on some established local businesses, and has now caused the closing of two local restaurants and an automotive repair shop. […]
Read more...County Liquor Board Wants to Nix Residency Requirements for Liquor Licenses
The Baltimore Sun had an interesting story last week about how the liquor board of Harford County, Maryland, wants to eliminate the state requirement that every county liquor license application have on it at least one resident of the county. As stated in the article, it can often be a challenge for a restaurant to […]
Read more...Liquor Liability, Licensing Issues on Tap for Maryland Legislature in 2014
In the December 2013 Maryland State Bar Association’s Bar Bulletin, I look ahead to the 2014 Maryland legislative session and preview a couple of issues that will be very important to retailers of alcoholic beverages in Maryland. Please take a moment to read the full article here.
Read more...Does Proposed Acquisition Raise Three-Tier Integration Concerns?
Generally speaking, and with some notable exceptions, the production, distribution and sale of alcoholic beverages in the United States are divided among three tiers, with ownership of producers, distributors and retailers required to remain separate. For example, in Maryland, where my firm has its primary practice, anyone with an ownership interest in an entity with […]
Read more...Liquor Laws Continue to be Big Focus in Montgomery County
In order to compete with its neighbor the District of Columbia, Montgomery County, Maryland, continues to strive to make itself a more inviting place for those seeking after-hours entertainment options. As indicated in my previous post, a sizable portion of these efforts involves reforming the county’s laws regarding the sale of alcoholic beverages. In case […]
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