U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks of Austin recently declared portions of the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code (TABC) unconstitutional as they apply to the advertisement and labeling of beer inside the state.
Sparks issued a Dec. 19, 2011, order granting in part and denying in part both parties’ motions for summary judgment in Authentic Beverages Co. Inc. v. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission . In the order Sparks wrote, “The practice of law is often dry, and it is the rare case that presents an issue of genuine interest to the public. Dealing as it does with constitutional challenges to the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code, it is anything but ‘dry’ — and this Court would never be so foolish as to question the sincerity of Texans’ interest in beer.”
