Penn law alum practices in the alcoholic beverage industry

Penn Law alum Alva Mather’s  job involves a lot of alcohol.

Mather, who graduated in 2004, serves as a general counsel to members of the alcoholic beverage industry at the Alcoholic Beverage Practice Group of Griesing Law LLC based in Philadelphia. Her responsibilities range from negotiating distribution agreements between companies to representing companies in all types of litigation. She is also a prolific writer, with articles published in Food & Drink and Pennsylvania Law Weekly,  among others.

While she didn’t set out to practice law in this field, Mather said she “was in the right place at the right time. I had the interest. I had the experience.” But now that she is part of the profession, she is happy to be there.

“Lawyers as a general sort can be kind of stuffy,” Mather said.“Craft brewers are the opposite of that. The general craft brewer uniform is a flannel shirt, jeans and lots of facial hair.”

In 2007, Mather took on a high profile case representing local New Jersey beer wholesalers against Anheuser-Busch, the owner of Budweiser,  and InBev USA, the owner of brands such as Stella Artois and Corona.

“The main takeaway was that I spent three and a half years being fully immersed in the [alcohol beverage] industry,” Mather said.

When the case ended in 2011, the number of craft breweries skyrocketed throughout the country. These breweries, which typically produce smaller quantities of beer in local and unique styles, represented a huge departure from the previous dominance of big brands such as Budweiser and Coors.

Many of these new breweries experienced a shortage of attorneys who were truly knowledgeable about the specifics of alcohol-related law. Because of alcohol’s potentially harmful qualities, the alcohol industry is much more tightly regulated than many other commercial industries. Noting this discrepancy in demand and supply, Mather decided to pursue further involvement in the industry.

“You need to have someone who knows the industry and knows the laws,” Mather said. “Because it is so complicated, it’s not the sort of thing that somebody can research and get the answer to if they don’t practice in the area.”

Elizabeth Fenton, Mather’s former co-associate noted in an email Mather’s dedication in mapping out a career path. “She identified an area of law and an industry she cared about and pursued the work.”

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.