Court case could break down provincial barriers for liquor

OTTAWA, ON. (NEWS 1130) – The Supreme Court of Canada has agreed to hear a case that could break down provincial trade barriers for alcohol.

The case revolves around a man who was ticketed for bringing 14 cases of beer and three bottles of liquor from Quebec to his home province of New Brunswick.

The lower court rulings have overturned the provinces ban on bringing alcohol over the border and if the high court agrees it could have a wider impact of breaking down all trade barriers between provinces. In an 88-page decision, Judge Ronald LeBlanc said the original framers of the Constitution never intended that laws should blatantly block the free flow of goods within their new country.

Conservative MP Dan Albas, who successfully passed a bill eliminating federal barriers on trading wine, is happy to hear the news. “This is the greatest opportunity, not just to free the beer, but also to open up the Canadian economy.” Albas adds it shouldn’t be easier for a brewery to ship to Texas than it is to another province

The New Brunswick Liquor Control Act prohibits anyone in the province from having more than 12 pints of beer not purchased through a liquor store in the province, a prohibition the judge called unconstitutional.

The New Brunswick Court of Appeal declined to hear the Crown’s appeal.

As usual, the Supreme Court gave no reasons for its decision to hear the case.

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