Joseph E. Seagrams & Sons, Inc. v. Oklahoma Alcoholic Beverage Control Board

This appeal arises from appellee’s petition for declaratory judgment to construe 37 O.S.1971, § 536.1, Oklahoma’s liquor price affirmation statute, and to test the validity of Article III, § 24, of the Rules and Regulations of the Oklahoma Alcoholic Beverage Control Board. We affirm the trial court’s narrow construction of “distiller” in § 536.1 as including resident and non-resident distillers. Further, we affirm the trial court’s declaration of the invalidity of Article III, § 24 on the grounds that the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board exceeded its authority in disallowing such suppliers…