A Los Angeles judge has dismissed a class-action suit accusing beer giants Anheuser-Busch and Miller Brewing Co. of encouraging underage drinking by targeting teens with their advertising.
Superior Court Judge Peter D. Lichtman ruled that state law indicates regulating alcohol ads is the job of the Department of Alcoholic Beverages Control, not the courts.
He also said the suit had failed to identify beer ads that were literally false. Additionally, plaintiffs failed to show how they’d suffered any direct harm as a result of beer marketing campaigns, the judge wrote.
Beer and spirits makers face similar class-action suits in Ohio, Colorado, North Carolina and the District of Columbia that allege they use sexually charged ads to induce illegal drinking by teens. Lichtman’s ruling has no direct bearing on those cases.