On June 5th, the state of Ohio filed a challenge to the 6th Circuit’s ruling in Block v. Canepa, which held that Ohio’s discriminatory wine retailer shipping law was unconstitutional for violating the dormant Commerce Clause and that the law did not properly serve health and safety interest.
The State of Ohio filed a cert petition […]
On June 5th, Ohio notified the Sixth Circuit that it has filed a petition for a writ of certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court, appealing the Sixth Circuit’s decision in Block v. Canepa, which held that Ohio’s discriminatory wine retailer shipping law and alcohol importation restriction laws as unconstitutional. It further requested that the filing […]
On February 24, 2026, my co-counsel, Gillian Garrett and I filed suit against the State of California challenging laws that allow California wineries to sell directly to California retailers without using a wholesaler, while denying those same privileges to out-of-state wineries.
We believe California’s system violates the dormant Commerce Clause by granting in-state wineries a substantial […]
A week after its discriminatory wine retailer shipping law was found unconstitutional by the Sixth Circuit, Ohio filed a motion to stay the Sixth Circuit’s mandate.
In the first line of the motion Ohio AG Dave Yost states that Ohio intends to file a writ of certiorari in this case with SCOTUS and the deadline for filing […]
In February, I announced a lawsuit that I filed with my co-counsel, Gillian Garrett, on behalf of Blue Sky Vineyards (an Illinois winery) and The Wine Country (a California retailer in Signal Hill). The case asks a focused question: when California allows in-state wineries to sell wine directly to California retailers, can […]
One day after the Sixth Circuit decision held Ohio’s wine retailer shipping law and alcohol transportation restrictions unconstitutional, the petitioners challenging Arizona’s discriminatory wine retailer shipping law filed a Supplemental Brief with the U.S. Supreme Court.
The petition has centered on a growing split among the circuits over how courts should analyze […]
The Sixth Circuit reversed and remanded a district court decision upholding Ohio’s discriminatory wine retailer shipping law and its law limiting Ohio residents from transporting wine into the state. As the Court stated “We thus hold the Direct Ship Restriction unconstitutional.”
The Sixth Circuit held that the district court’s focusing its Tennessee Wine analysis on […]
In support of cert petitioner challenging the Ninth Circuit’s ruling in Day v. Henry, upholding Arizona’s discriminatory wine retailer shipping law, I filed an Amicus Brief.
The cert petition and the amicus take aim at how far afield the circuits have become in adjudicating whether a discriminatory wine retailer shipping law can withstand a Commerce […]
Provi announced today that it entered into a partnership with the Vermont Department of Liquor and Lottery to launch 802Spirits Connect, an online platform for retailers to utilize for ordering spirits online. Vermont is a control state and presently Vermont retailers need to call in orders. The new system will allow retailers to browse real-time […]
A new lawsuit filed against Tennessee’s law that requires hemp derived products go through a three-tier system, similar to liquor, will test the wholesaler led march to dominate and take over the hemp industry.
Hemp infused beverages are a fast-growing industry and WSWA wants to corner the market through government mandates forcing hemp producers to […]