LEX VINI

Employment Update: New Laws for 2020

It is that time of year when we look to see what will change for California employers.  We have summarized some important changes to California employment law that may have an effect on your business as we enter the New Year.  There may also be local laws that are not reflected below. If you have […]

Wildfire Smoke Cal/OSHA Guidelines Apply to Indoor and Outdoor Employees Wildfire Smoke Cal/OSHA Guidelines Apply to Indoor and Outdoor Employees

Cal/OSHA issued an advisory to employers in California who may be encountering heavy smoke at worksites due to the wildfires. The Department of Industrial Relations and Cal/OSHA want to ensure that you have the information you need to protect your workers during this situation. More information is available on their website at https://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/Worker-Health-and-Safety-in-Wildfire-Regions.html. For the most […]

Napa County Winery Permitting in State of Flux

The Napa County Board of Supervisors has undertaken a series of major regulatory moves involving winery and vineyard permitting over the course of the past year. Critics of the various regulatory changes abound on all sides of the issues, with the board navigating a difficult path between wine industry, agricultural, environmental and anti-growth interests. First, […]

New Sexual Harassment Training Requirement Delayed One Year

On Friday, August 30, 2019, Governor Newsom signed into law SB 778, clarifying requirements for mandatory sexual harassment training.  The bill is an urgency statute, which means it shall go into immediate effect.  The law can be found here. The key points of the clarifying statute are: All employers with five or more employees required […]

Uncertain Immigration Climate – What Can Employers Do?

Since the 2016 election there has been speculation of wide-spread immigration actions by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”).  Repeated announcements from the President for “round-ups”, recent mis-match letters from the Social Security Administration (“SSA”) and court action concerning the census citizenship have many in the community on edge. While it is difficult […]

Making Sure Your Wine, Beer or Spirits Club Complies with State and Federal Law

The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (“ABC”) recently issued a new Industry Advisory regarding subscription services. In the alcohol beverage industry, we often see subscription services in the form of automatic renewal wine clubs, beer-of-the-month clubs, and/or spirits clubs, where customers sign up to receive future shipments of a licensee’s offering of wine, beer, […]

Supreme Court Decision is a Victory for Alcohol Beverage Retailers

Alcohol beverage retailers won a significant victory before the U.S. Supreme Court this morning.  The Court held in Tennessee Wine & Spirits Retailers Association v. Thomas that Tennessee’s two-year durational-residency requirement applicable to retail liquor store license applicants violates the Commerce Clause and is not saved by the Twenty-First Amendment.  In doing so, the Court […]

TTB Efforts to Streamline COLA Application Process: New “Conditionally Approved” COLA Status

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (“TTB”) recently announced upcoming changes to the Certificate of Label Approval (“COLA”) application review process.  Specifically, TTB will be adding a new “Conditionally Approved” status allowing applicants to fix minor errors in their COLA applications without having to go to the back […]

U.S. Trademark Office Issues Cannabis Registration Guidance

On May 2, 2019 the USPTO released its Examination Guide 1-19, Examination of Marks for Cannabis and Cannabis-Related Goods and Services after Enactment of the 2018 Farm Bill (here: https://www.uspto.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Exam%20Guide%201-19.pdf) , which aims to clarify the procedure for examining marks for cannabis and cannabis-derived goods and for services involving cannabis and cannabis production following the […]

UPDATE: Grapegrowing and FSMA Compliance

The FDA has issued guidance for its enforcement policy on the Produce Safety Rule, part of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The Produce Safety Rule identifies certain produce as “not covered” or eligible for an exemption to Product Safety Rule compliance.  The primary exemption is with respect to “rarely consumed raw” produce.  As […]

2019 Unified Symposium: DPF Reception, Panels, & Booth Information

The annual Unified Wine and Grape Symposium takes place next week, and Dickenson, Peatman & Fogarty attorneys will be on hand to meet our Lex Vini readers. Reception We are hosting our annual reception at Ella Dining Room & Bar on Wednesday, January 29th from 5:00pm-7:00pm and would love to have you join us! Panels […]

Federal Government Shutdown and COLAs

The current federal government shutdown has put a halt to TTB’s regular operations and that has had a ripple effect on the alcohol beverage industry.  Wine producers and importers must obtain a Certificate of Label Approval (COLA) for wines they sell in interstate commerce.  While the online system for submitting COLA applications is still operational, […]

2019 Employment Law Update: Compliance in the New Year

Each January California employers have to ask themselves the question, what’s new in employment law?  2019 is no exception, as there have been a number of changes employers should be mindful of as we enter the New Year.   Here are some of the key changes affecting California employers this year: Salary History: Finally, the question […]