Reyes Beer Division and Seismic Brewing have “amicably resolved” the federal antitrust lawsuit filed by the Santa Rosa, California-based craft brewery in April.
The two companies issued a joint statement today.
“Reyes Holdings, L.L.C. and Harbor Distributing, L.L.C., together with WSJ, LLC d/b/a Seismic Brewing Co., Apple Cart Cider, LLC d/b/a Golden State Cider and Sonoma Craft Holdings, LLC, have determined it is in their mutual best interests to pursue potential business relationships going forward,” the companies wrote. “Recognizing that litigation is inconsistent with these business objectives, the parties have also amicably resolved all outstanding legal disputes between them.”
Disputes between the two companies began in July 2019, when DBI Beverage was sold to Reyes. The deal led to legal filings from both DBI and Seismic, as DBI attempted to include Seismic’s distribution rights in the transaction. Seismic ended its distribution deal with DBI, leading DBI and Reyes to seek fair market value for Seismic’s brand rights.
In February, the judge’s decision on the case mainly sided with DBI. Three months later, Seismic filed its lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleging Reyes had conspired to create a monopoly of California’s beer distribution market. The filing came one day after Reyes announced plans to acquire Columbia Distributing’s distribution business in Northern California.
Seismic alleged the anticompetitive conduct of DBI and Reyes — including allegedly asking 3X the gross profits of Seismic’s 2018 sales from Markstein Beverage Co., which Seismic chose as the success for its DBI distribution territories – “damaged competition and caused substantial injuries that the antitrust laws are intended to remedy.”
According to the statement, “neither party has admitted any wrongdoing or liability,” and as a result of the resolution, “neither side has any legal claims against the other.”
“The parties are glad to have reached a mutual resolution of these legal matters and look forward to working together,” the companies wrote.
Previous Brewbound coverage on the disputes is available here:
Reyes to Acquire 28 Million Cases From DBI Beverage in Northern California