• East_End_Brewery
  

Michael B. Gottlieb

Principal Attorney

“I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts, and beer .”Abraham Lincoln

Michael Gottlieb is a business attorney specializing in restaurant law and alcohol (beer, wine, and liquor) law in Oregon and Washington. Throughout Mr. Gottlieb’s career, he has been deeply involved in the challenges of the restaurant, liquor, and hospitality industries, from a business and legal perspective. The owners of restaurants, bars, breweries, brew-pubs, and beer distributors have unique challenges. Many are family owned businesses that have the complexity of a larger enterprise. Many are owned by restaurant-savvy individuals who are not experienced in the legal and regulatory world. And with ever-shrinking margins, many simply cannot afford expensive attorneys to help them.

Mr. Gottlieb has advised restaurants, bars, breweries, brew-pubs, beer distributors, and beer importers/exporters on a wide variety of issues. He offers reasonable rates to these clients to help them succeed.

Affiliations and Education:
Member, Oregon State Bar
Member, Washington State Bar
Member, Oregon Restaurant and Lodging Association
Participant, Oregon State Bar Lawyer Referral Service, Restaurant/OLCC Panel
Juris Doctorate, cum laude, Certificate in Business Law, Northwestern School of Law at Lewis & Clark College

Start-up & On-going

  • Entity formation (LLC, Corp) and governance
  • Leases and tenant improvements
  • Real estate purchase
  • Equipment leases and purchases
  • Loan negotiation and contracts
  • Investor/Lender solicitation, negotiations, and contracts
  • Credit card merchant contracts
  • Partnership agreements
  • Vendor contracts
  • Employment contracts, policies and procedures, and employee handbooks
  • Affiliated company agreements (e.g. multiple outlets)
  • Management company agreements
  • Business licensing
  • Sidewalk café and Street Seat permits
  • Lottery licenses
  • Estate planning to protect assets from future creditors

Disputes and Litigation

  • Regulatory violations (OLCC liquor license violations, noise ordinance violations, occupancy permit violations, health code violations, BOLI actions)
  • Vendor disputes and settlements
  • Debtor representation (defense for lawsuits from creditors)
  • Defense for personal injury and premises liability claims
  • Partnership disputes
  • Negotiations with payroll/taxing authorities, including the Internal Revenue Service, Oregon Department of Revenue, Oregon Employment Department, Washington Department of Revenue, and Washington Department of Labor and Industries

Beer and Alcohol

  • State liquor licensing, application denials or conditions
  • TTB Brewery and Brewpub Notices
  • TTB COLA Label Approval
  • FDA Food Facility Registration
  • Distribution Agreements
  • Health Department licensing
  • Trademarks and servicemarks
  • Purchase or sale of a brewery, winery, distillery, restaurant, bar, night club, or catering company

Current & Former Clientele


Gottlieb Law  |  Attorneys at Law
PO Box 209
Lake Oswego, OR 97034

Call us for a telephone consultation at (971) 441-0140
  • Portland-Oregon-bw-1280