In the case of California Brewers Association et al. v. Bryant et al., 1979, the U.S Supreme Court was asked to consider whether a California law that prohibited breweries from providing financial assistance or free merchandise to retailers violated the Sherman Antitrust Act. The plaintiffs, a group of beer manufacturers and wholesalers, argued that this law prevented them from competing fairly in the market by restricting their ability to promote their products effectively. However, defendants (California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control officials) maintained that it protected consumers by preventing large breweries from dominating the market through aggressive promotional tactics. The court ruled in favor of Bryant and others upholding California's tied-house laws which prohibit certain forms of vertical integration between alcohol producers, wholesalers and retailers as they were not pre-empted by federal antitrust laws under Webb-Kenyon Act & Wilson Act; these acts allow states broad power over importation/distribution within its borders for intoxicating liquors.

In the dissenting opinion for California Brewers Association v. Bryant, it was argued that the majority's decision to uphold a state law prohibiting breweries from providing retailers with advertising specialties violated the First Amendment rights of brewers. The dissent contended that this prohibition constituted an unjustified restriction on commercial speech and failed to serve any substantial governmental interest. It was further noted that such restrictions could potentially lead to arbitrary enforcement due to their vagueness and overbreadth, thereby infringing upon free expression in business communication. Additionally, it was suggested that if states were allowed to impose such prohibitions without demonstrating a significant public interest being served or showing how these measures directly advance said interests, then there would be no limit on what other forms of commercial speech they might suppress under similar justifications.