Alva C. Mather
Subscribe to Alva C. Mather's PostsAlva Mather is the global head of McDermott’s Regulatory Practice Group and a member of the Firm’s Management Committee, and heads the Alcohol Regulatory & Distribution Practice. As a nationally recognized go-to lawyer for alcohol beverage regulatory, commercial and M&A matters, clients say that Alva “comes to the situation with clear leadership and strong knowledge of the food and beverage industry.” She combines her extensive knowledge of the commercial and legal landscape as well as deep understanding of the beverage industry to help clients mitigate risk, respond to challenges, and capture and pursue new business opportunities. Read Alva Mather's full bio.
Preparing for Evolving Cybersecurity Threats
By David Sorenson, Michael Morgan and Alva C. Mather on Apr 15, 2024
Posted In Uncategorized
The recent ransomware attack against the Duvel Moortgat Brewery demonstrated the very real risk that cybersecurity incidents pose to the alcohol industry, reportedly halting operations for several days at four of Duvel Moortgat’s facilities in Europe and the United States. This attack comes after other major alcohol producers experienced disruptive ransomware attacks in the last...
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So, You’ve Been Sued in a Labeling Class Action. Now What?
By Daniel Campbell and Alva C. Mather on Apr 1, 2024
Posted In Advertising and Marketing, Beer, Malt Beverages and Cereal Beverages, Class Action, Distilled Spirits, Litigation & Arbitration, Seltzers, THC Beverages, TTB COLAs and Formulas, Wine and Cider
Many alcohol beverage industry clients are faced with lawsuits attacking product labels. These lawsuits can be frustrating for clients, particularly when the labels at issue were previously approved by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). But approval by the TTB does not insulate a company from a lawsuit under various state consumer...
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TTB Ramps Up Tax Audits and Enforcement
By Alva C. Mather, Christine Dower and Michelle Draper on Mar 19, 2024
Posted In Alcohol Excise Taxes, Enforcement, Licensing
The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau’s (TTB) Office of Field Operations is responsible for ensuring industry members comply with the Federal Alcohol Administration Act, the Internal Revenue Code and all related regulations. It is divided into three groups: the Trade Investigations Division (TID), the Tax Audit Division (TAD) and the Intelligence Division. Many...
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Navigating Hemp THC Beverages
By Alva C. Mather and Christine Dower on Mar 4, 2024
Posted In Cannabis, Food Safety and FDA
Nonalcoholic beverages infused with delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) derived from hemp (aka intoxicating hemp beverages) are becoming increasingly popular for consumers looking for an alternative to alcohol. With major alcohol retailers like Total Wine entering the cannabis space, alcohol beverage producers may be looking for opportunities to leverage their existing experience in manufacturing, marketing and distributing...
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Mixed Beverage Definition Gaining Traction in Indiana
By Alva C. Mather on Feb 22, 2024
Posted In Legislation
Indiana is one step closer to passing legislation that would allow popular liquor-based, ready-to-drink products to be defined as “mixed beverages” that currently fall under the definition of liquor in the state. An Indiana House of Representatives committee advanced House Bill 1025 earlier this month. The bill would add a new section to Indiana Code...
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Don’t Assume Nonalcoholic Beverage Ingredients Are OK for Alcoholic Beverages
By Alva C. Mather and Alice Chung on Feb 5, 2024
Posted In Food Safety and FDA, Non-Beverage Alcohol, TTB COLAs and Formulas
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Tips for Alcohol Suppliers Utilizing Social Media
By Lesli Esposito and Alva C. Mather on Jan 22, 2024
Posted In Advertising and Marketing
In light of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) 2023 revisions to its Endorsement Guides, it is essential to ensure that your business is compliant. While the alcohol industry is known for product innovation, the industry is also embracing innovation on the marketing and advertising front, most notably with the use of social media. Given the...
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Contracts Corner: Sponsorship Agreements
By Alva C. Mather on Jan 10, 2024
Posted In Advertising and Marketing
Sponsorships continue to be one of the alcohol beverage industry’s primary methods of promoting brands to drinkers. In professional sports alone, alcohol beverage brands contributed $480 million in sponsorship revenue across the four major professional sports leagues during the 2022–2023 season, according to a SponsorUnited study. As suppliers look to better target audiences via sponsorships,...
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The Tax Implications of Purchasing Craft Producers in the First Half of 2024
By Alva C. Mather on Dec 19, 2023
Posted In Alcohol Excise Taxes, Transactions
We have republished this August 2023 blog post ahead of the start of 2024. If a large beverage company is considering purchasing or selling a craft beverage producer, it’s essential to understand how the craft producer may lose its earlier eligibility for reduced tax rates under the Craft Beverage Modernization Act (CBMA) in the first...
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Total Wine Tests the Boundaries of FTC CIDs
By Alva C. Mather, Lesli Esposito and Marisa Poncia on Dec 7, 2023
Posted In Uncategorized
Total Wine & More (Total Wine) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) are currently clashing in federal court over a civil investigative demand (CID) that the FTC issued to Total Wine, a third party in the FTC’s investigation of Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits, LLC (Southern Glazer). Total Wine has fervently resisted producing certain corporate...
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