Blog Posts: Lawyers on Tap
Visit the Full BlogThe attorneys of Verrill are here to help your business navigate the complex world of beverage law. This blog keeps you informed of the latest news and legal updates in the beverage industry so you and your company can focus on doing what it does best, making great products.
9:00PM “Curfew” Announced for Some Maine Businesses During Thanksgiving Week
Starting tomorrow, Friday, November 19, certain Maine businesses will be required to close their doors at 9:00PM each day, through Sunday, December 6. With increasing numbers of positive COVID-19 cases and holiday gatherings expected throughout the state, the Mills Administration announces this and other public and safety measures in...
Join Us at The 2019 New England Craft Brew Summit
Join us this Friday, March 1, at the 2019 New England Craft Brew Summit at the Holiday Inn By the Bay in Portland, Maine. The premier regional, craft beer industry business-to-business conference will be jam-packed with seminars on a variety of topics geared towards business operations, technical brewing and...
Times Are Changing: Verrill Dana Hosts Full-Day Conference, 2019 Annual Employment Law Update
After a year full of changes for employers paired with a new governor in Maine, Verrill Dana will reflect on recent legal developments in labor and employment law and what the new year might bring during its 2019 Annual Employment Law Update. The full-day conference will take place on...
Changing Policies and Practices? Don’t Just Question if it’s Legal, Question the PR Consequences
Over the past few days, while many were preparing turkeys or throwing out lettuce, the Boston Globe posted Trouble is brewing at craft beer darling Trillium. The article is accessible here , and another article by Paste on the same subject is here , but the long and the...
Lawyers on Tap in Nashville
Next week, on April 30, thousands from the craft brewing community will take over America's Music City for the Craft Brewers Conference and BrewExpo America , presented by the Brewers Association. Joining them at this year's conference are Verrill Dana Lawyers on Tap, Tawny Alvarez and Jonathan Dunitz...
A Different Kind of Bud: Cannabis in the Alcoholic Beverage Industry
Last week, on March 22, 2018, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission issued an Advisory on cannabis in alcoholic beverages. Here is a copy of the Cannabis in Alcohol Advisory . While retail sales of cannabis are expected to be lawful under Massachusetts law (while still an...
Arctic Opportunities: Exploring New Passages for Business Growth in the Arctic & North Atlantic
Changes in the shipping routes have placed Maine businesses on the doorstep of the Arctic and Northern Europe. Thanks to the addition of Eimskip, it now costs less to ship a container to Norway than it does to truck it to Maryland. On Thursday, October 19, 2017 from 9:00...
Out of the (Maine Beer) Box: Standing Out in a Global Marketplace
After traveling to Iceland with more than a dozen of Maine's brewers to greet the Maine Beer Box at the Bjorfestival in Reykijavik, Verrill Dana Attorney Tawny Alvarez reflected on the importance of standing out in a global marketplace in an article for the Craft Brand & Marketing Magazine...
Tips on Tap for Breweries on the Journey from Passion to Profit
As the number of craft breweries across the country continues to grow, Verrill Dana's Breweries, Distilleries & Wineries Group presents Tap Tips Podcast Miniseries to help brewers on the journey from passion to profit. The miniseries contains eight episodes to assist up-and-coming brewmasters and brewery owners to think critically...
78 Taps of Beer on the - Shipping Container?
On June 24, the people of Reykjavik, Iceland will get a taste of Maine in their hometown – 78 taps of beer to be exact. After years of planning and a great deal of collaboration between the Maine Brewers Guild and various brewers and industry partners throughout the state...
Brewing Up a Small Business: Legal Issues Affecting Maine’s Craft Breweries
On June 8, Verrill Dana attorney, Tawny Alvarez, will participate in a panel discussion entitled, "Brewing Up a Small Business: Legal Issues Affecting Maine's Craft Breweries," hosted by the Cumberland Bar Association at Preti Flaherty in Portland, Maine. Joining Tawny are Perkins Thompson attorney Christopher Dargie and Maine Beer...
Leading the Pack: One Brewery's Leave Policies Are Pawsitively Unique
We talk a lot about the parameters of leave programs. New state laws that are popping up regularly that expand on employee leave rights. While we focus on the legal aspects of all leave laws, we do recognize the importance of having leave policies that work for the culture...
How Big is the Bite for Failing to Accommodate Service Animals?
Multiple New England breweries in the last week have made the difficult decision to no longer permit four-legged friends within tasting rooms. This article provides absolutely no opinion on those decisions—they are difficult decisions that are personal to the breweries. If, however, you own, manage, or are simply employed...
Managing Risk in the Craft Brewing Industry
In a presentation for The Risk Management Association Young Professionals Group, Austin Street Brewery Owner Will Fisher; GHM Insurance Agency's James Sanborn; TD Bank Relationship Manager Shauna Miller; and Verrill Dana Attorney Tawny Alvarez, gathered at Austin Street Brewery on its 3 rd Anniversary to provide an overview of...
Build, Protect & Grow Your Brand
With the craft beer industry continuing to gain momentum, it becomes increasingly more difficult to come up with creative and unique beer and brewery names, as well as to ensure your recipes, people and logos remain your own. In an article for Craft Brewing Business , Verrill Dana attorney...
This Week on Tap: Alternative Minimum Tax and Craft Breweries
We all enjoy tax savings, and breweries and distilleries should be taking advantage of recent legislation that went into effect earlier this year that makes the Research and Development tax credit permanent and enhances the tax credit by not limiting the credit to Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). Further, the...
I Wine, You Wine, We all Wine for Ice Cream . . . But Not in Massachusetts
Late last month, Massachusetts's Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission issued an advisory entitled "Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission ("ABCC") Advisory to § 18 Wholesalers/Importers and § 19 Manufacturers Regarding Alcohol-Infused Ice Cream." The Advisory notes that Massachusetts General Law chapter 138 prohibits the importation, manufacturing, and sale of ice cream that...
Join Us at Brew Talks New England 2016
Verrill Dana's Breweries, Wineries & Distilleries Group is excited to sponsor this year's Brew Talks New England , part of Brewbound's traveling series of meetup events for professionals in the brewing industry, on October 24 at Jack's Abby in Framingham, Massachusetts. The program will offer both educational and networking...
OSHA Penalties May Cause Craft-Industry to Say O SH**
Late last week, while everyone was focused on the summer holiday, the Department of Labor announced that pursuant to the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvement Act, OSHA's maximum penalties, which have not been raised since 1990, will increase by 78 percent. This will increase the "serious", "other-than-serious"...
Age May Be Good For Wine . . . But Antiquated Liquor Laws Are Helping No One
To say that alcohol laws are antiquated is an understatement, but there's only one thing we can do about it—go to our legislators and change them. That is exactly what Massachusetts business-owners are doing. On Tuesday, two modest changes to Massachusetts alcohol laws were presented to the House of...
Beer Distributor Appeals NLRB Finding as to Terminated Union Employee Who Reeked of Marijuana
Appellate briefing to the Second Circuit was completed earlier this week in Manhattan Beer Distributors LLC v. NLRB , a case in which the NLRB, in 2015, held that Manhattan Beer Distributors violated an employee's Weingarten rights when they terminated a distribution employee who "reeked" of marijuana after he...
‘Tis the Season for Internship Nightmares
With college exams finalized we hear from many companies that bring on college interns for a few weeks in late December and early January. It provides clients with help to catch up on things that slipped through the cracks during the course of the year and provides the intern...
