Hospitality and Liquor Licensing Law

Travel, Leisure and Hospitality

Tanner De Witt Solicitors provides legal advice and representation for a variety of companies and associations within the travel, leisure and hospitality sectors. Our local and international client base includes airlines, travel agents, travel trade associations, and hotel, entertainment and food and beverage groups.

Our comprehensive knowledge of the travel, leisure and hospitality industries and related laws in Hong Kong ensure that we have a thorough understanding of all aspects of our clients’ businesses. By way of illustration of our experience, for many years we acted as the Hong Kong legal counsel for the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the world’s largest airline association; and we continue to act for a variety of restaurants and bars and other hospitality enterprises, from inception through to franchising. For legal advice concerning the travel and leisure sectors, please contact Ian De Witt or refer to our Corporate and Commercial section for related services and further contacts.

Liquor Licensing in Hong Kong

Tanner De Witt’s lawyers have extensive experience in dealing with liquor licences in Hong Kong. We frequently provide legal advice and representation to bar and restaurant owners as well as large hotel, hospitality and entertainment groups.

Whether concerning the application of a liquor licence or helping clients appeal court decisions relating to alleged breach of liquor licence laws such as sale of alcohol or noise nuisance, Tanner De Witt Solicitors has the capability to help.

Our integrated team of corporate lawyers and litigators are very familiar with processes outlined by Hong Kong’s regulatory bodies in the food and beverage industry. These include the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD), the Home Affairs Department (HAB), the Buildings Department the Fire Service Department (FSD), as well as the Liquor Licensing Board (LLB) and the Municipal Services Appeals Board (MSAB).

Liquor Licensing – Legal Advice and Representation in Hong Kong

We endeavour to provide our clients in Hong Kong’s hospitality industry with insightful, practical and commercial legal advice at competitive rates. Examples of our legal services within the food and beverage sector include:

• Applications for the issuance of new liquor licences in Hong Kong
• Renewals of liquor licences in Hong Kong
• Transfers of liquor licences in Hong Kong
• Applications for the amendment of liquor licences (e.g. addition of dancing endorsements) in Hong Kong
• Representing clients at contested hearings before the Hong Kong Liquor Licensing Board
• Advising clients in relation to objections raised by the Police, Government departments or members of the public to the granting, transfer, renewal or amendment of liquor licences in Hong Kong
• Advising clients in relation to alleged noise nuisance
• Advising licensees in relation to prosecutions for breach of licence conditions or laws and regulations governing the sale of liquor
• Representing clients in appeals to the Municipal Services Appeals Board against decisions of the Liquor Licensing Board
• Applications before the Municipal Services Appeals Board for the interim stay of Liquor Licensing Board decisions pending the determination of appeals
• Advising on judicial review proceedings