Petition to free-up Texan wine buying

US wine retailers have started a petition in the hope of overruling a law which prevents Texan wine drinkers from buying wine from out-of-state retailers.

Created by the Speciality Wine Retailers Association (SWRA), the petition calls for an En Banc hearing, which involves all judges from a court, not just a small panel of judges, coming together to consider a case upon which a smaller panel of judges has already ruled.

The suit, which was originally filed three years ago, concerns the Texas law that discriminates against non-Texan wine retailers, blocking Texas wine drinkers from accessing wine from other stores.

On 26 January this year, a ruling confirmed that the Commerce Clause of the US Constitution protects wine producers from discriminatory state regulation, but not wine retailers or the Texas consumers wishing to purchase wine from them.

The ruling, which was made by the three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit court, overturned an earlier Federal District Court ruling that called Texas’ prohibition against consumers purchasing wine from out-of-state retailers unconstitutional.

Tom Wark, executive director of the SWRA, an association which represents wine stores, web-based retailers, auction houses and wine clubs, said: “We are concerned that the outcome of not appealing this decision would be that Texas wine lovers will continue to be harassed by anti-consumer laws that serve no other purpose than to shield well-heeled campaign contributors from competition.”

To access the petition click here

Jane Parkinson, 12.02.2010