Tag: alcohol
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“Whiskey Fungus” Claims Not Preempted
A federal court in Kentucky has determined that distillery neighbors may proceed with state law-based tort claims alleging that the facility’s emissions cause “whiskey fungus” to accumulate on their real and personal property. Merrick v. Diageo Americas Supply, Inc., No. 12-0334 (W.D. Ky., Louisville Div., order entered March 19, 2014). Additional details about the lawsuit…
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Four Loko Maker Settles AG Claims
According to New York Attorney General (AG) Eric Schneiderman, Phusion Projects, LLC, the company that makes Four Loko flavored malt beverages, has agreed to settle allegations by 20 attorneys general and the San Francisco city attorney that the company marketed and sold its products in violation of consumer protection and trade practice statutes. In re…
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Settlement Reached in Coverage Dispute for Four Loko Maker
The company that makes Four Loko, a caffeinated malt liquor beverage allegedly responsible for the deaths of five consumers, has reached a settlement with two Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. units which had sought a declaration that a policy exclusion freed them from defending or indemnifying the beverage maker in the underlying lawsuits. The Netherlands Ins.…
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Prop. 65 Violation Claims Leveled Against Alcoholic Beverage Makers
A three-attorney, Pasadena, California-based law firm has filed numerous 60-day notice letters since March 2013 to companies that make alcoholic beverages, warning that they have failed to comply with a section of the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (Prop. 65) by selling without the required warnings (i) “alcoholic beverages, when associated…
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Court Imposes Spoliation Sanctions in Wine Infringement Dispute
A federal court in California has granted a motion for sanctions filed by Jackson Family Wines, which brought an infringement action against Diageo North America; an adverse inference instruction will be given to the jury during trial, and the plaintiff will be able to recover the costs of its efforts to secure a Diageo marketing…
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Ad Watchdog Censures “French Beer” Brewed in UK
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld two complaints alleging that Heineken UK Ltd.’s print and TV advertisements gave the impression that its Kronenbourg 1664 beer was brewed in France and made primarily from French hops, despite text disclaimers stating that the product was “Brewed in the UK.” According to the February 12, 2014,…
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FAA Grounds Beer Delivery Drones
The Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) has reportedly nixed a brewery’s plan to use an unmanned aerial system (UAS) to deliver six-packs of its winter lager to ice-fishing shacks in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. According to media sources, Lakemaid Beer posted an online video advertising its drone delivery service, prompting FAA to notify the company that the…
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Sixth Circuit Upholds Restrictions on Liquor Sales in Kentucky
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has determined that Kentucky has a rational basis for restricting the types of retailers that may be issued licenses to sell liquor and wine, thus ruling that the law does not violate grocers’ equal protection rights. Maxwell’s Pic-Pac, Inc. v. Dehner, Nos. 12-6056, -6057, -6182 (6th Cir., decided January…