The Tasty Grape Wine Store and owner Cindy Holland are suing the British Columbia Wine Institute for allegedly unreasonably denying an application to sell the BC Vintner's Quality Wine Store to Liquor Barn.
Holland and the store filed a notice of civil claim in BC Supreme Court on March 27, claiming she signed a deal with the institute in 2010 to operate the BC Vintner's Quality Wine Store in Courtenay. The deal stipulated that Holland couldn't move the store without the defendant's consent, but approval couldn't be "unreasonably withheld or delayed." However, Holland and Tasty Grape claim that the institute wouldn't allow the sale or transfer when they applied to sell the store to non-party Liquor Barn.
The BC Wine Institute then allegedly terminated the agreement in July 2013, "preventing plaintiffs from operating the BC VQA Wine Store," according to the claim.
Holland and Tasty Grape seek general and special damages for breach of contract and costs. None of the allegations has been proven in court and the British Columbia Wine Institute had not filed a response by press time.
