A beverage distributor was precluded from presenting an expert’s assessment of its purportedly lost profits because the expert’s conclusions regarding revenue forgone by the new business were not based on relevant data.

R&R International, Inc., a beverage distributor, accused Manzen, LLC, of breaching the distribution agreement they entered in 2008 and sought $8.1 million in lost profits based on an expert’s report. The expert, a former financial advisor with substantial experience in the beverage industry, had gathered information about R&R’s potential earnings from industry contacts and estimated certain costs based on market averages. The defendants sought to exclude the expert’s report as unreliable.