Volume I

Issue : 5: September 4, 2003

• U.S. Court of Appeals (9th Cir.) Asserts Jurisdiction over Online Retailer
• Court Limits Extraterritoriality of the U.S. Copyright Act
• Amazon.com Launches Lawsuits in U.S. and Canada to Stop Spoofing
• Property and Trade Secret Rights Outrank Free Speech Rights in DVD Copying Code Case
• Parties To Litigation Do Not Hold Copyrights Over Examination for Discovery Transcripts
• U.S. Court of Appeals Upholds Statutory Damages for Domain Registered Prior to the Enactment of ACPA
• Major U.S. ISP EarthLink Sues John Doe Spammers in B .C. and Alabama
• Defence of Misuse Extended to Suppression of Criticism in Copyright
• Online Broadcasters Sue Recording Industry (RIAA)
• Sixth Circuit Court Strikes Down Michigan Wine Law as Unconstitutional
• Saskatchewan Court of Appeal Upholds Criminal Conviction For Online Marketing Scheme
• U.S. First - North Dakota Prosecutes a Man for Gambling on the Internet
• U.S. Appeals Court (9th Cir.) Rules Massively Overbroad Subpoena For E-Mails Led to Privacy Violation

Home > Volume I > Issue 5: September 4, 2003 > Sixth Circuit Court Strikes Down Michigan Wine Law as Unconstitutional

Sixth Circuit Court Strikes Down Michigan Wine Law as Unconstitutional

On August 28, 2003, the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals struck down a Michigan State law regulating the sale and distribution of wine as unconstitutional. In the case of Heald v. Engler, several wine distributors including those that sell online, successfully raised a constitutional challenge to Michigan's alcohol distribution system claiming that state provisions differentiating between in-state and out-of-state wineries violate the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution. The regulations at issue were those that prohibit the direct shipment of alcoholic beverages from out-of-state wineries, while allowing in-state wineries to ship directly to consumers, provided that the in-state wineries comply with certain minimal regulatory requirements.

The District Court found that the law discriminated against out-of-state wineries; however, it did not find that the law was unconstitutional. This decision was reversed by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeal, which held that the state law in question was unconstitutional since it discriminated against out-of-state wineries and there was no adequate evidence justifying the violation.

For summaries of recent related decisions by other U.S. Appeal Courts, please read the July 10, 2003 issue of Law of .Com.

For a copy of the decision, visit:

laws.findlaw.com/6th/03a0308p.html

For a copy of Lawsof.com July 10th, 2003 issue, visit:

www.lawsof.com/archive/20030710.html