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Alcohol & Liquor Licenses
March 23, 2021
The acquisition of Drizly, an alcohol delivery service by Uber last month, is part of a broader trend in the food and alcohol industry to do more business on-line. Many brick and mortar businesses and entrepreneurs are trying to follow a similar template. To accomplish this successfully, they must comply with the Massachusetts alcohol licensing statute. Some of the requirements are: On-line delivery of alcohol must have a package store license. There has to be an actual store with an identifiable address that is connected to the on-line delivery. (A stand-alone delivery service without a physical location is prohibited.) The owner must be a citizen of the United States. If the owner or ownership group is a foreign corporation or limited liability corporation, at least one half of the directors must be US citizens. The manager must be a Massachusetts resident. If the food or alcohol is being brought into Massachusetts from another state or foreign country, the business has to complete an application with the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) for approval. The Department of Homeland Security and Import/Export Administration may also get involved in any goods imported into the United States. The […]
November 6, 2019
The call came in when I was on vacation, while I was relaxing by the pool with my family, The caller said this was an emergency. The new client was the owner of a small-town convenience store. His livelihood and family’s future was on the line, He was the underdog. What I could not anticipate was the number of appeals, emergency stays, and bureaucratic hoop-jumping we would face together over the coming six years of litigation. My client was a family-run convenience store in the town of Grafton, located in Worcester County. The convenience store had a package store license to sell alcohol. In April of 2013, a police sting operation sent in an underage person to buy beer or wine. She was not carded by the staff, however, and succeeded in buying the alcohol. Unfortunately, this was not the first time such a violation had occurred at the convenience store. The customary penalty for this infraction was a few days’ to a few weeks’ suspension of liquor sales. In August of 2013, however, the Grafton Board of Selectmen voted to revoke the convenience store’s license entirely. The owner then had only a few days to make an appeal to […]
April 19, 2019
Attorney David Rubin wins liquor license case for a South Grafton, Massachusetts business owner. Grafton selectmen OK Village Dairy’s alcohol license, with conditions By Richard Price | Worcester Telegram GRAFTON — The Village Dairy, a South Grafton convenience store that was cited five times for liquor sale violations over the years, will get its license back — but with conditions agreed to by the owner. Selectmen voted Tuesday night to allow the renewal of the store’s beer and wine sales license under an agreement that stipulates the owner will install and maintain a scanner to verify the ID of every customer who asks to buy alcohol; that cameras will be installed to review the transactions; and that police will be allowed to conduct quarterly inspections. The owner also agreed to stop sales and notify the chief of police if the equipment is not functioning. The vote was 4-1, with Selectman Craig Dauphinais opposed. He said the store and its owner had too much history. The business owner, Amjad Chaudry, agreed to the terms with his lawyer, David Rubin, who was present. The store will be run in the daytime by a new manager, Mariam Anwar, who the board also met […]
November 26, 2018
By Lisa Redmond | The Grafton News WORCESTER – A superior court judge has ruled in favor of the owner of Village Dairy saying Grafton officials improperly withheld an alcohol license from the South Grafton convenience store, and that the state Alcohol Beverages Control Commission failed to respond to the town’s “willful thwarting″ of the licensing procedure. In a legal battle that began in 2014, Amjad Chaudry, owner of Arslan Inc., d/b/a Village Dairy at 167 Main St., filed a 2017 lawsuit against the Town of Grafton and the ABCC claiming he was improperly prohibited from renewing his liquor license. In April, each party asked Worcester Superior Court Judge William J. Ritter to rule on a request for a judgment. In his August decision, Ritter allowed Village Dairy’s motion for a favorable judgment and denied motions by the town and ABCC, sending the license back to the selectmen. Instead, on Oct. 10 the town filed a notice of appeal to the state Appeals Court, according to the court docket. In his decision, Ritter chastised the town for its actions in this case. Ritter accused town officials of “willful thwarting of the license renewal process.″ Ritter wrote in his decision that […]
July 9, 2018
The first consideration in applying for an alcohol license in Massachusetts is to find-out if one is available. This may seem obvious but there are many factors to determine this. First, can the license be purchased from the city or town where it is located? The number of licenses available is determined by a quota system. The second question is what type of license is being sought? The availability of a license is determined in part by the type of license. Is it for a restaurant, club, hotel, package store, or other type of business? Is it a beer and wine license, or an all-alcohol license? If a license is unavailable from the city or town, then the applicant will have to purchase a license from a private party. The price will be based on the law of supply and demand. Licenses purchased from a private party are usually more expensive than those from a municipality. Once the application is made, detailed financial and personal disclosures are required. Residence and citizenship matter.
March 4, 2016
My client, Village Dairy in Grafton, Massachusetts had served alcohol to a minor during a sting operation in 2013. The Town of Grafton tried to suspend their beer and wine license permanently because this had happened before. I successfully appealed the decision to the ABCC in Boston. The ABCC directed the Town of Grafton to reinstate the license. The town refused. I successfully re-appealed the decision. The ABCC again directed the town to reinstate the license but the town refused. At that point, I asked the ABCC to reinstate the license, which the ABCC did in 2015. The Post Office Pub story is about a restaurant in Grafton which had multiple violations for selling to an underage minor but in that case, the town only suspended its license for three days. The issue is why the selectmen gave The Post Office Pub a slap on the wrist but decided to punish my client, Village Dairy, with a permanent revocation of its license.
September 1, 2011
Boston liquor license lawyer, Attorney David Rubin concentrates on local alcohol license transfers in Boston and throughout the Greater Boston and MetroWest region including Newton, Framingham, Waltham, and Dedham . Attorney Rubin often represents local businesses such as package store proprietors, club and restaurant owners, and local tavern and bar owners who require liquor licenses. Attorney David Rubin is a liquor license lawyer who knows the applicable Massachusetts laws, and has appeared many times before licensing commissions, including the Boston Licensing Commission, on behalf of clients seeking alcohol license transfers. To discuss the acquisition or transfer of a liquor license in Boston or for an establishment in the Greater Boston MetroWest region, please contact our firm to speak with David Rubin, an experienced Massachusetts liquor license attorney.
March 24, 2011
MORE INFORMATION: I’m considering buying a small restaurant in Framingham, MA. It seats no more than 30 people and has a small bar that seats 6. I’d like to be sure I can serve alcoholic beverages (beer & wine). What are the eligibility requirements and what do I need to consider to obtain the proper liquor license in Framingham? ATTORNEY ANSWER: The first consideration in the purchase of a restaurant that has a small seating capacity is whether the cost of obtaining a liquor license makes financial sense because the demand for alcoholic beverage licenses in most communities is much greater than the supply. In many cities and towns, the starting purchase price starts at $100,000 and can be much higher, depending upon the location.
December 8, 2010
Greater Boston liquor license lawyer, Attorney David Rubin focuses on local alcohol license transfers. In that capacity, we represent local businesses such as package store proprietors, club and restaurant owners, and tavern and bar owners throughout the Greater Boston Metrowest region who require liquor licenses. Attorney Rubin knows the applicable Massachusetts laws, and he has appeared many times before licensing commissions, including the Boston Licensing Commission, on behalf of clients seeking alcohol license transfers. To discuss the acquisition or transfer of a Massachusetts liquor license, contact Attorney David L. Rubin.