Miller Coors sued by 2 Ohio distributors

9/5/2008

CLEVELAND MillerCoors LLC is facing a court fight in Ohio over its attempt to cut beer distributorships.

Beverage Distributors Inc. of Cleveland and AFP Distributors Inc. of Glouster, in southeast Ohio, have asked U.S. District Court Judge Michael Watson in Columbus to block the brewer from breaking their franchise agreements.

MillerCoors said it will terminate the distributorships effective Sept. 25 under an Ohio law allowing such an action when ownership changes. The company is a newly formed joint venture between SABMiller s U.S. unit and Molson Coors Brewing Co.