Another loss for the wholesale lobby!
<b>Ruling: Indiana's wine-sales law unconstitutional</b>
IndyStar.com Business
4:32 PM August 30, 2007
A federal judge has ruled unconstitutional an Indiana law that essentially bars most online and phone transactions by out-of-state businesses that ship wine to Hoosiers.
The law is unconstitutional because it bars wineries that possess wholesale privileges in other states from seeking a Direct Wine Seller's Permit in Indiana, according to a 71-page ruling issued late Wednesday by Judge John D. Tinder of the U.S. District Court in Indianapolis.
The judge also ruled the law is unconstitutional because it requires the initial transaction to be made in person between customers and permit holders before a Direct Wine Seller's Permit holder may ship its products directly to an Indiana resident.
The ruling requires David L. Heath, chairman of the Indiana Alcohol & Tobacco Commission, stop enforcing the law.
Several years ago, another group of wine consumers represented by two of the same attorneys in this action, brought a similar suit that was ultimately unsuccessful, the ruling said. The Seventh Circuit ruled that Indiana could prohibit the direct shipment of wines to Indiana residents.
"Since then, the legal landscape has changed," the ruling said. "In 2005, the Supreme Court held that a state could not discriminate against out-of-state-wineries by prohibiting them from shipping wine directly to consumers if the state's laws allow in-state wineries to do so."
The Supreme Court also ruled in 2005 that the 21st Amendment, which repealed Prohibition but allowed states to regulate the sale and distribution of alcohol, did not override the requirements of the commerce clause of the Constitution.
Story in The Indianapolis Star
