Wine Law

URUGUAY AND WINE: CURRENT SITUATION AND LEGAL FRAMEWORK 505 (Law 18.462 of 8 January 2009 3 ) for the execution of the national viticulture policy (Law 17.295 of 31 January 2001, which includes the Cider within its competences). This law also incorporates, as a focus of the reconversion fund, the industrial processing plants and the incentive for the export of wine products. According to Law 18.462, INAVI is audited by the National Internal Audit Office and by the Court of Auditors and, currently, under Decree 150/102, by the National Audit Office as well. Both laws established the legal status of this Institute as a “non-state legal entity of public law”, based in the city of Las Piedras, although its operating regime is that of a private activity, especially concerning accounting and labour statutes. The Board of Directors is made up of eight members: three delegates that correspond respectively to the Ministries of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries (which presides it), the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Mining and the Ministry of Economy and Finance; and five representatives of the sector’s producers, who are appointed by the Executive Power and proposed by the associations of winegrowers or winemakers, following the issued regulations. This designation precisely was regulated by Decree 328/09 of 07 March 2009, providing that the private sector guilds must meet certain requirements (first degree, national, two years of seniority, legal status, bylaws, list of members with a representation such that the number of authorised members is not less than 5% of the corresponding list according to the registry kept by INAVI). The winegrowers’ and winemakers’ associations must agree among themselves and propose to the Executive Branch their two representatives and their respective substitutes for INAVI’s Board of Directors. Once the four representatives and their substitutes have been proposed, the Executive Branch will appoint them as representatives of the private sector, unless it decides not to appoint any or all of them for justified reasons. Once the four union representatives have been formally appointed, they shall have a term of 30 calendar days to propose, by agreement of those already appointed, the fifth member for the private sector and the respective substitute, who must be chosen from among the names originally proposed by the unions. If there is no agreement, the Executive Branch will appoint them directly by choosing one of those initially proposed by the different unions. Article 7 of Law 18.462 provides that the Executive Branch shall directly appoint the representatives of the private sector, when the respective entities have not formalised their proposal within 60 days of being suggested, in which case the appointments of the incumbent and substitute shall necessarily be made by persons related to the sector. 3 Law 18.462 consists of 18 articles and was regulated by Decree 279/09 of 08 June 2009 and Decree 328/09 of 13 July 2009.