Legal Support

We can help you find a trusted partner in the law and form a close relationship with the firm long before you need it. Though HDS does not retain any full-time lawyers on its’ staff, we have close relationships with legal teams around most major U.S. jurisdictions that specialize in hospitality related matters. Primarily, we are utilized directly for providing expert witness testimony in court matters related to the hospitality industry, but can save you money by assisting with many services such as document collection and review, financial and operational summaries relevant to your case, and the sourcing of depositions from parties involved in your disputes. Proper legal coverage not only saves you money and time, it protects you from costly litigation, keeps you compliant, and manages legal risks around contracts. With the right partner these legal hurdles cause minimal if any disruption to the day-to-day conduct of your primary operations.

Some, but not all, of the areas our legal allies support include:

· Litigation support and the use of alternative resolution techniques such as dispute mediation and arbitration

· New Hospitality Startup: Business formation and structuring, entity selection, partner operating agreements, support for venture capital raises, initial permitting and licensing processes, compliance checks, assistance with Mergers and Acquisitions

· Real Estate and Land Use: Lease negotiations, legal advice on real estate transactions, property acquisitions and dispositions, environmental impact assessments, zoning issues and land use restrictions, zoning variances and approvals, retail leasing, negotiating land rights and water rights

· Contractual Agreements: Drafting, negotiating, and support for:  Management contract agreements [full service and limited service], franchise agreements, vendor and service provider contracts and commitments, vendor service disputes, technical service agreements, residence agreements, equipment and supply chain agreements, guest reservations and cancellations

· Employment: Advisement on employment and labor laws, wage and hour compliance under FLSA, tipped wage reporting compliance, overtime pay, navigating employee benefits, staff manuals, drafting employment contracts, union negotiations for hotels and restaurants, visa sponsorship for international employees, affirmative action and EEO plans, employer protection in discrimination lawsuits, employer defense in wrongful and discriminatory discharge claims and protected class claims

· Risk mediation: support for guest injury claims, security failures, foodborne illness outbreaks

· Financing: Hospitality finance transactions including lender-side and borrower-side mortgage debt, mezzanine financing, preferred equity, and securitization of hotel revenue streams. Fund formation and ownership structuring for hospitality properties including REITs, private equity vehicles, joint ventures, and co-mingled funds

· Growth and expansion strategies: capital raising, franchising acquisitions, and joint ventures

· Negotiations with tax authorities 

· Protection of trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, customer data, and Intellectual Property, and information technology

· Negotiations of licensing deals

· Insolvency, Restructuring & Bankruptcy: restructuring or sale of non-performing loans, debt restructuring alternatives in a variety of credit structures including secured and unsecured loan facilities, letter of credit facilities, privately placed notes, and lease financing facilities. Preferential outcomes through Out-of-court restructuring or liquidation opportunities. Contested confirmation hearings, discharge contests, validation disputes, claims objections, stay relief hearings, and involuntary bankruptcies.

· Acquisitions and disposals of hospitality properties: portfolio transactions—negotiation of assumption agreements, subordination agreements, and unspooling encumbered management agreements

· Compliance with the Hotel Guest Registration Act

· Health and Safety: navigating regulations related to safety, fire prevention, workplace health, OSHA compliance, Covid-19 safety compliance, handling insurance disputes, pool and recreation activity permits

· Insurance: Insurance claims including business interruption related to property damage or natural disasters, advice on insurance coverage and risk reduction strategies

· Environmental regulations concerning waste management and water conservation

· Food and Beverage: Food safety regulations and all other F&B laws, allergen disclosure requirements, food handling, storage, and preparation requirements, alcohol licensing and license transfers

· ADA [Americans with Disabilities Act] compliance

· Data protection and privacy: Keeping your hotels and restaurants fully compliant with PCI DSS [Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards] as regards your storage of credit card information and recommending mitigation strategies including network firewalls, staff trainings, storage of physical data using PCI-compliant POS and PMS systems, and helping you conduct regular risk assessments. Representing you during FTC enforcement actions regarding your handling of your business’ collection and use of guest’s personal data. Navigation of all other relevant federal statutes related to reasonable security for financial data including the GLBA [Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act] and the FCRA [Fair Credit Reporting Act] and for health data [HIPAA]. Counsel related to all state-specific comprehensive privacy laws regarding data protection in your operating environment particularly for our clients operating in California given the far-reaching CCPA [California Consumer Privacy Act]