On July 22, 2011, Networking Seminars will be presenting “Successfully Navigating the New Economy: Legal and Tax Issues Facing the Wine Industry.” The conference will take place from 9:00 a.m to 5:00 p.m. at the Napa Valley Marriott and conclude with a networking wine reception sponsored by Napa Valley Vintners. The conference will discuss legal […]
The recently-published wine law treatise by Richard Mendelson, Wine in America: Law and Policy, is now available on Amazon.com. The treatise is intended to provide reference information on legal issues affecting the wine industry. The subject areas include trade practices, labeling and advertising, business models for making wine and growing grapes, the commerce clause and the 21st […]
On May 24, 2011, TTB published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) proposing to establish the Naches Heights American Viticultural Area (AVA) in Yakima County, Washington. The Naches Heights AVA would be located within the Columbia Valley AVA. TTB is asking for comments on the NPRM on or before July 25, 2011. The proposed AVA is […]
On May 24, 2011, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) published the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) proposing to establish the Coombsville viticultural area within Napa County and the North Coast and Napa Valley AVAs. TTB is accepting comments on the NPRM until July 25, 2011. Comments may be submitted online, by […]
E-Verify is the federal government’s electronic employment verification system. It is an Internet-based system that allows an employer, using information reported on an employee’s Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, to determine the eligibility of that employee to work in the United States. The E-Verify system is operated by the Department of Homeland Security in partnership […]
While many employers have focused their attention on the stalled Employee Free Choice Act over the past few years, another more targeted bill has quietly made its way through the California legislature. Senate Bill 104, the “Fair Treatment of Farmworkers Act,” would effectively eliminate secret ballot elections for organizing farmworkers by creating a “card check” […]
It is tough to be an employer in California. Until recently it was even tough for employers to fire employees who were violent or abusive at work if they had a disability that in anyway contributed to the violent behavior. The California Court of Appeal recently recognized that employers have a duty to ensure a […]
On May 17th, the Trademark Trial and Appeals Board (the “Board”) of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (the “USPTO”) granted an opposition filed by Miguel Torres, S.A. against a trademark application for GRAN SOL and Design for Tequila (as shown below) based on the prior registration of the trademark GRAN VIÑA SOL for wine […]
In a sign of TTB’s efforts to streamline and expedite the COLAs review process, the TTB announced on May 3, 2011 that it will no longer evaluate labels for purposes of ensuring that the labels conform to legibility and type size requirements (including characters per inch and contrasting background) contained in the code. TTB will […]
The IRS has not changed the mileage reimbursement rate this year despite the rising cost of gasoline. The current rate of .51 cents per mile went into effect January 28, 2011. The last time gasoline prices were as high as they are today was Spring 2008. At that time, in recognition of the high cost, […]
Vintners and growers from the far western coastal areas of the Sonoma Coast AVA have recently launched a marketing program to promote the “WestSonomaCoast” area. The group has determined, at least for now, that the politics and bureaucracy surrounding the AVA formation process do not best serve the group’s goal of distinguishing the far west […]
One of the basic tenets of U.S. trademark law is that trademark rights may only be established upon use of a trademark in commerce. Whether the rights are established at common law, or whether a federal trademark application has been filed based on current use or intended use, trademark rights cannot attach until the trademark […]
This is the second part of a two part post discussing prescriptive easements. Last time we talked about how one of two neighbors (“Joe”) should be careful not to compromise or lose his claim to a prescriptive easement to continue using a road on his neighbor’s (“Jane’s”) property by using not so common, common sense. This time […]
This is the first part of a two part post discussing prescriptive easements. Common sense – that’s what guides most of us, most of the time, and that’s a good thing. However, when it comes to protecting property rights, common sense solutions can sometimes be dangerous. This is because some rules of property law are counterintuitive, […]
Brand trends in an industry, or at least branding plans for a particular player in an industry, can often be seen before they actually debut in the market by watching trademark filings. Under U.S. Trademark Law, a brand name, or trademark, can be protected before the brand name is ever used in the marketplace. This […]
The following blog post is from our friend, Bennett Lee, a Canadian wine lawyer located in Vancouver, British Columbia, working for the Boughton law firm. Bennett may be contacted at [email protected] and you can learn more about Boughton at www.boughton.ca. Vancouver, Canada may be one of the most livable cities in the world, but its […]
In the wine industry, one of the most common legal disputes is breach of contract between grape growers and wineries. Often times, grape growers are surprised to learn that, upon the delivery of grapes to a winery, they automatically have a statutory lien against any wine made from those grapes. This lien, called a “producer’s […]
Many wineries wonder whether they can store unlabeled wine bottles or “shiners” (perhaps for aging or as library wines) in storage areas outside of their bonded premises. The short answer from the “TTB” is no. Although TTB regulations provide that wines must be labeled before they are removed for “consumption or sale,” the TTB has […]
The State of Massachusetts ABC recently held that Groupon’s online coupon discounts for alcohol at bars and restaurants run afoul of that state’s ABC regulation regarding happy hours. This case made clear that the many Groupon-type coupon marketing businesses currently in the market need to recognize the regulatory aspect of their offers when alcoholic beverages become […]
California real property is reassessed upon certain transfers causing higher (or lower) property taxes. Generally, a reassessment will occur when ownership of the property is transferred. Exclusions from reassessment are available for transfers of real property between spouses and between a parent and a child. Therefore, family owned vineyards and winery property may have been transferred down through […]