Southern Wine & Spirits, et al. v. Division of Alcohol & Tobacco, et al., No. 12-2502 (8th Cir. 2013)
Annotate this CaseSouthern Wine filed suit challenging the Divisions' denial of its application for a license to sell liquor wholesale in Missouri. The Division denied the application because Southern Wine did not satisfy a residency requirement under Missouri law. The court concluded that Southern Wine had not shown that the residency requirement was unconstitutional on the ground that it was motivated by mere economic protectionism; the Division has established a sufficient basis for its residency requirement, which was meaningfully tied to the aim of the Twenty-first Amendment to allow States to maintain an effective and uniform system for controlling liquor by regulating its transportation, importation, and use; and the requirement had a rational basis and did not deprive Southern Wine of equal protection of the laws under the Fourteenth Amendment. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment of the district court upholding the statute.
Court Description: Civil case - Constitutional law. Residency requirement applicable to the wholesale tier of Missouri's liquor distribution system, which is otherwise impermissible under Commerce Clause jurisprudence, is authorized by Section 2 of the Twenty-first Amendment; the Division established a sufficient basis for the residency requirement which is meaningfully tied to the aim of the Twenty-first Amendment; the requirement has a rational basis and does not deprive plaintiff of equal protection of the laws under the Fourteenth Amendment.
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