Breweries | Read Time: 4 minutes

Assignments of Alcohol Distribution Agreements in Florida

In Florida, alcohol distributors occasionally seek to transfer their distribution agreements to new distributors. The roles of beer, wine, or distilled spirits suppliers vary greatly in these assignments. While, beer distribution agreements are tightly regulated by the Florida Beer Franchise Law. assignments of wine or distilled spirits distribution agreements are governed only by general contract laws and principles. Florida...

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Breweries | Read Time: 6 minutes

Transfer of Florida Alcoholic Beverage Manufacturer: 5 Keywords

Rather than launching a new Florida alcoholic beverage manufacturer, it might be better to buy an existing operation. The Buyer gets a built-out premises, with all the equipment and buildout already in place, and a built-in customer base. The Seller gets to move onto other things. Business transfer transaction are always complicated, and even more so in a heavily...

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ABT | Read Time: 4 minutes

What Brewdog Brewing Tells Us About the Florida ABT’s Role

Brewdog Brewing Asked About a Flaw in the Florida Beer Franchise Law In 2020, Brewdog Brewing Company LLC (“Brewdog”) asked the Florida Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco (ABT) what the word “successor” means as used in the Florida Beer Franchise Law, Florida Statutes Section 563.022(16). At stake was whether would be bound to the distribution agreements that had...

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Contracts | Read Time: 6 minutes

Considerations for Collaborations in Florida

A love for collaborations–“collabs”–is among the (many?) things that hip hop artists and craft alcohol manufacturers share in common. In both cases, the final product often appears to be a spontaneous creation of free-flowing, shared artistry. The reality is–or at least should be–a carefully plotted and executed navigation of fundamental questions about ownership, commercialization, and distribution. Whether a record...

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Contracts | Read Time: 3 minutes

Alcoholic Beverage Contract Manufacturing in Florida: Two Model Processes

Sometimes an alcoholic beverage brand developer wants to focus on developing and promoting a product brand and leave the manufacturing to someone else (sometimes called “white labeling”). This can mean good business for the manufacturer too. Whether the product is classified a beer, wine, or distilled spirits, a variety of contract manufacturing arrangements are available in Florida. This article...

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Contracts | Read Time: 4 minutes

COVID-19 is a Force Majeure Event – What Does That Mean?

Force Majeure: It’s Out of Control “Force majeure” is one of those legal terms that might be hard to explain (and spell), but you know it when you see it. The term literally means “superior force,” but it has come to mean any extraordinary event that is beyond the control of contracting parties. Force majeure events might include acts...

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Breweries | Read Time: 4 minutes

Ownership Agreements: 3 Common Mistakes

Beverage manufacturers–breweries, wineries, and distilleries–are often the creation of a core group of owners. One of the owners might be the mad-scientist brewer, who loves to create new style-busting beers. Another might be the marketing genius, who believes that a beer can be sold with the right branding and marketing. Still another might be the financier, who knows a...

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Contracts | Read Time: 3 minutes

Save Money on Contracting with These Two Words

Reading, writing, and revising complicated business contracts: the central parts of my practice. I am often asked to prepare a written contract my client wants to send to a contract partner or to revise a contract they received from their contract partner. For these situations – there are two words that will help save my clients save money: Term...

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