Croke Fairchild Duarte & Beres Achieves Summary Judgment Victory Defending Illinois Liquor Regulations for the Wine & Spirits Distributors of Illinois

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September 26, 2025

Partners Michael Layden and Collin Bruck helped obtain summary judgment, granted by the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, in a dormant Commerce Clause challenge to Illinois’ liquor laws.

In Freehan et al. v. Berg et al., (22 CV 4956), an out-of-state wine retailer and three Illinois wine consumers sued officials of the Illinois Liquor Control Commission alleging that Illinois’ laws violated the dormant Commerce Clause by preventing out-of-state shipments of wine directly to Illinois consumers. Croke Fairchild Duarte & Beres was retained by the Wine & Spirits Distributors of Illinois (“WSDI”), a not-for-profit trade association representing the State’s leading wine and spirits distributors, to defend Illinois’ laws alongside the Illinois Liquor Control Commission.

Working with the Office of the Illinois Attorney General, WSDI and the Illinois Liquor Control Commission, we jointly prevailed on cross-motions for summary judgment, where the Northern District held that WSDI and the Illinois Liquor Control Commission established the challenged laws promote public health and safety and, therefore, are legitimate exercises of the State’s powers under the Twenty-first Amendment.

Croke Fairchild Duarte & Beres is proud to deliver a victory to WSDI and its members, and appreciates the trust and dedication of WSDI’s Executive Director and General Counsel, Jeremy Kruidenier, who was instrumental in leading our efforts through this multi-year battle.