WineLaw.ca

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BC Budget: No News is Good News

As expected by many, the BC Budget for 2009 which was delivered yesterday did not contain any measures with immediately apparent impact on the wine industry. This was somewhat predictable since BC wine prices are now so high at retail that there really is no room for the government to try and extract additional revenue unless they reform the distribution system (more on that later). The one lingering issue is the implementation of the HST scheduled for next July. The combined HST rate on wine will be 12% which is actually 3% lower than the existing combined rates of 10% PST and 5% GST. As a result, there would be an actual reduction on the tax rates applicable to wine if the government does not act to increase retail prices by other means (such as increasing other fees or liquor board markups). The reduction in taxes is extremely small when compared to the usurious rates of liquor board markup (117%) and other fees. However, it will be interesting to see how the government handles the difference. Tax policy must be applied fairly and consistently as between imported and domestic wine. However, liquor board markup is currently not applied fairly so there is an interesting problem on the horizon. Maybe the government will just give consumers a break and let them have a 3% cut? Just wishful thinking.

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The Shaky Foundation of Canada's Liquor Monopolies

Only a wine lawyer could possibly be interested in the 80 year old prohibition era law that is known as the Importation of Intoxicating Liquors Act (or the IILA). Unfortunately, over the last few months, I have had far too many occasions to think about this archaic bit of law which is actually the foundation of Canada's antiquated liquor distribution system.

It was passed by the federal government at the end of prohibition and at the request of the provinces. The historical context is as follows. As most people know, prohibition was an utter failure both here in Canada and in the U.S. Alcohol consumption actually went up during that time and the prohibition laws simply made criminals out of otherwise law-abiding and productive citizens. The provinces were desperate for a way out of the mess and each of them eventually put forth the option of government control over liquor which they thought (correctly at the time) would appeal to enough people to constitute an acceptable middle ground.

Read more: The Shaky Foundation of Canada's Liquor Monopolies

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Wine Law Conference November 2009

I am co-chairing a conference (with Chris Wilson of Bull Housser & Tupper) on "Winery and Wine Distribution Law." which is set for November 12 and 13 here in Vancouver. We have a great lineup of speakers from both the wine industry and the legal side. Plus we have a wine tasting scheduled for the Thursday evening with the incomparable team of Sid Cross and David Scholefield. The full program brochure is here.

There's a 50% discount on your registration fees if you are part of the winery business ... just register online but choose the student/new job option to get the discount (the winery discount is set out in the "Tuition" part of the program brochure).

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Alberta Liquor Board (AGLC) Threatens BC Wineries

The Alberta liquor board (AGLC) has written to several BC wineries threatening them with criminal enforcement action if they continue shipping wine to Alberta. The letter states that shipping wine directly to individual customers in Alberta is illegal under both the federal Importation of Intoxicating Liquors Act ("IILA") and the provincial Gaming and Liquor Act and Regulation. The AGLC claims that all liquor shipped into Alberta must be consigned and shipped to the AGLC. The AGLC action raises countless issues, some practical and political, as well as a number of legal issues.

John Schreiner covers the issues from the wineries perspective here.

The various legal issues (including a workaround for shipping and possible solutions) are discussed in this article on wine shipping law in Canada which I have updated to deal with the AGLC's actions.