Hotels, tourism & hospitality
Overview
The hotels, tourism and hospitality industry’s combined annual revenue is more than $115 billion and is core to driving Australia’s economy. While the industry continues to grow after the challenges inflicted by COVID-19, challenges remain in the form of workforce shortages, rising cost bases including operating expenses and property, consumer demand for services and consumer confidence, as well as the proliferation of sharing economy platforms.
Our hotels, tourism and hospitality team understand the challenges and complexities the industry faces, and has the legal expertise, commercial nous and distinctive operating style to provide practical solutions for even the most challenging of issues.
Our multi-disciplinary team advises a wide range of industry participants, including developers, owners, hotel operators, investors and fund managers. We have a deep understanding of the interrelated requirements of the hotels, tourism and hospitality sectors.
Our experience includes advising on iconic and large-scale transactions involving hotels and mixed-use developments throughout Australia, Asia, the Middle East, North and East Africa, and Europe.
We bring together legal expertise in corporate and commercial, construction, finance, property and planning, employment and workplace safety, environment, tax, dispute resolution and liquor and gaming licensing. This combination of legal expertise, which is overlaid with deep industry knowledge, gives clients a level of integrated service that reduces risk and enhances reputation. It enables opportunities to be seized and ensures compliance with the industry’s complex regulatory requirements.
We are recognised experts in advising registered clubs and helping them achieve their goals, while also complying with strict regulatory requirements.
Our team includes highly experienced lawyers who are chartered company secretaries, fellows of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, and non-executive directors and board chairs.
Our services to the industry include advising on:
- applications for licences, such as gaming, hotel, trading hours, boundaries and liquor
- the purchase and sale of operational assets
- commercial contracts, including for joint ventures, entertainment, technology, supply contracts and tendering
- dispute resolution
- employment and industrial relations, including employment contracts and policies, enterprise bargaining, claims relating to unfair dismissals, discrimination, bullying, harassment, wages, workplace safety and workers’ compensation
- financing
- governance, operational compliance, risk management and regulatory compliance
- insurance
- intellectual property and trademarks
- management arrangements including director and officer liability
- the protection of personal data and privacy, and data breaches
- property development and redevelopments, ranging from finance and site acquisition to planning, development and construction
- restructuring and insolvency
- tax
The different legal teams that make up our hotels, tourism and hospitality team are recognised in respected guides to Australia’s best lawyers including Chambers & Partners, Legal 500 and Best Lawyers in Australia.
