Case Information
*1 OFFICE OF THE AlTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN
: : f0dh in the ‘art mu00e+3aing ragrash Ihare la tb be no 3 agreaent botwaon the rhola aiatributor ma tha retallar & exoept that eddewed by mah written oontraet.
Wo should like your opinion aa to whether ar not ruoh~oontraot tha purohasa ma 8ala o? boor in t&e rout+ ti lanmwp would k in vlolatlon o? the abova quotaa prorl- #ion or th0 psa oom
uadum o r an A l ement ma am thl8 1946 $ and b&wan Oaloob bayo r mtlag -ton dloob). harrlartkr~oalled *~Sellar ha6 rold and by theaa pnseata aom ho-by bargain to sol1 unto war ona thou& oum OILOdd? d\ping the
bfJ~ t0 b0 adiTOFOa hdr auri4j the rolhdng tmlv0 IBOZI~~~‘~-. rfx 8 per oana, or ror the ooillng pi00 rlxe a, th0rGXiT the went $ j par oam l8 greator than "0 oeillng prloe; and F to pay ?or amn In oarh at rgrwr
Qountg, mnm. *@To guaraako' rkithna .o? thlr oontraot, ur0rwaw haa depositma with & e or 321) ornh gar oam+. .,.hyu ! br &lLraa depwitthrougbout ’ 'ublah ahnllbohold tha Sirat twelve months of thie oontmiot, ma aumg the rolloulng tualvo~aon~ ror eaah oam of the 500 oasoa omtraotea m, Billor ahall allow Bwar. oents par oaaa -0ait thereon.
*WI the evonthyu rh4llfail orr*?u80 to tdm sala boor as herainabaro Oaotraotrd ?or prom W ad pay thrrerar in wah aa abovo provlaea, tr l a 8814 lx4 that event myor ahall iorfolt to Wlor uhatwer amount oi a0 omit ramalna on haad a8 ?uI.l llquibatod amia6p ?ar brea og of tblr otmtraot.*
"Ibo,!hrnsLl~~ OontrolBo~ahaa oamlokatlyro- ,I bellevs you rlU agrsa t&at the otlre Toxas Uqttaa Ouaitrol *3 Eon. Bart lord - Page
Aot haa ‘bean daalgnad to prevent a wholeealer ?rau aubaldizlng a retailer In any way*” You have oorrootly woted Article 667-a (1) o? the
Psral Code of Texas and wa note partloulerly the last phrase thereof aa followa: %o require take or ale- the retailer to auoh produot.w . Th have round no’ pose o? a oertain quot.& O? on legal a0018ions oonatrullg th Artlole, f or ona similar thareto, and maequeatly O&R oonatruotlon of it aa atatrd below oon- telna no oltatlcQla.
It la our opinion that tha intention eb t&o Lgialature which motivated the pawage of the torsgolng statute waa to pm- vent a dlatrlbutor’a aohemo of monopoly cr ubaldlzatlon wer a retailer by requiring him to oontraot ?or tha purohaw o? a oer- taln amount or brand o? bear or to reoelve no oantraot at all. We do not think it ma the purpose o? the statute to prevent t&e mating of all written ooutraota.wharoby the rottiler rooeives a oertaln amount or brand Of baar,aa suoh lnhlbltlon would produoe a greater evil then that whloh the statute attanpte to ramsdy. We lntempret the wFd8 “to require the retailer to take or dle- pose a oertaln quota I? there Is a n- . .* to mean that quiremqnt by the diatrlbutor, to the extent OS aoerolon, in a?- ferlng the retailer thr choloe oi ao3eptlng a ocmtraot a oertaln amount or brand of beer or elmply to .reoalve no oontraot, the agreement, tpen is violative Of this Artidle.
On the athOr hand, it l8 Oup opinion that the Article waa not ildIlded bo an ln?rlngeWnt upon tba isir and reaaombb o~traoting rlehta dlatrlbutora and ratallara. Imat l8, it the amount or braad OS bbu *wared by eaoh oontraot la aoter- mined br the denandr aad wlrhoa o? the purohaser (the rrteiller) au& contract l#.uaoutad to rupply hla naeda and serve hia intereats, than the agr@aent nould not ocmo within legltlnutta the prohlbltlon of thlr Artlolo evan though the’ agrrvnt to buy or deal la these partlaular product8 was tranraotod through only one Individual distributor. the oontraot you present hero, we are
By almply roadl unable to determine with n whloh of the fore lng oategmiee ralls beoauaa we are not famlllar with the ..o fz oumatanoea aur- t4iere haa been aonu foka or oo- rounding its exaoutlon. Wethor erolon whloh lnduaed the making of the cont~ot or wh&her it hm bean exeoutea talrly pursuant to the retallu’a requlrmenta la not evident from the face Of the InatrLunent. Suoh adi-iaa- tion reqdrea an lnv~atlgatl0n into the 1ntantk.u ob the psrtlea and thelr poal tlone in the bargain aa intluanoed by pmaant
Eon. But ma - Pam or the Texas
eoonamio shOrtagaar This la a re8 m;;;glty Liquar Control Board and its a&n lx.3
Pursuant to tha atandarda we have outlined bwa, Is wlthln the Board’s sound dlaorotion, upon completing a study the baokground and ciroumetanoea aurroundlng tha mdcing the oonlraot, to aetumlne wbother the agrewent Is valid, bargain gr whether it fair reaaoaable bushes8 was impalled by t* oouolon o?.the dlatributor oontrary to 667-24 (j), VdrP.00 Artlob
w0 trust thla aatlafaotorily answers your Inquiry. Yours very truly 2 ATmiNEY QENWAL OB t.Jma By (Signed) Ja& K. Ayer Assistant APF'ROVIED AU@
(signed) Oarloa 0. Aahlay
BIRST ASSLST.d?T
ATTORNEY OENBRAL
JKA/djm/JMo/al
APPFtOvED ’ OPINION CCWMITPEB