Maryland Code § ABC-5-103

(a) It is the policy of the State that:
(1) it is necessary to regulate and control beer franchise agreements
and relationships between beer manufacturers and beer distributors:
(i) to foster and promote temperance in the consumption of
beer; and
(ii) to promote respect for and obedience to the laws that
control the distribution and sale of beer; and

(2) temperance and obedience to the laws that control the
distribution and ultimate sale of beer is promoted by legislation that encourages beer
distributors to make investments in their facilities to serve retail license holders by
protecting them against the termination of beer distributorships, or other acts
described in this subtitle, without good cause for the termination or other acts.
(b) It is necessary to accomplish this policy to eliminate the undue
stimulation of sales of beer in the State by beer manufacturers that induce or coerce,
or attempt to induce or coerce, beer distributors to act detrimentally to the orderly
and lawful distribution of beer by:
(1) threatened or actual termination of the beer manufacturer and
beer distributor relationship, directly or indirectly;
(2) the establishment of dual beer distributors of a brand or brands
of beer in a sales territory presently served by a beer distributor; or
(3) the sale of the same brand or brands of beer in one sales territory
by more than one franchisee.
(c) The General Assembly further recognizes the distinction between the
nature of the distribution of beer and other alcoholic beverages in that distributors of
alcoholic beverages other than beer are franchised by manufacturers to distribute
many brands of various kinds of alcoholic beverages and are not as vulnerable to the
economic pressures of the manufacturers as are beer distributors, which traditionally
handle mainly one, two, or three brands of beer in their distributorships.

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