Elizabeth A. Lashway
Elizabeth A. LashwayOf Counsel

Practice Areas

  • Administrative Law

  • Alcoholic Beverages Licensing

  • Alcoholic Beverage Franchise Law

  • Appellate Law

  • Business Law

  • Business Litigation

  • Contracts and Business Agreements

  • Hospitality

  • Leasing

  • Licensing

  • Municipal Law

  • Regulatory Compliance

  • Zoning

Admissions

  • Commonwealth of Massachusetts

  • U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts

Associations

  • Board of Bar Overseers, Hearing Officer

  • Boston Bar Association, Solo and Small Firm Committee

Community and Professional Activities

  • Wellesley Town Meeting Member

  • Schofield Cares, Co-Leader

  • Wellesley Cares, Co-Founder

Education

  • B.A., Dickinson College (cum laude)

  • J.D., Suffolk University Law School

Elizabeth A. Lashway

Of Counsel

Liz is a business advisor and disputes attorney whose practice concentrates on state and local regulatory, municipal, and licensing matters, business litigation, and business counseling. Liz advises a wide range of businesses, including large, international alcoholic beverage manufacturers and suppliers; U.S. and foreign boutique wineries; local breweries, hotels, restaurants, package stores, and brokers; and other small businesses, individuals, and nonprofits.

As a business advisor, Liz has a significant amount of experience advising her clients on strategic and tactical matters, including, for example, negotiating, drafting, and executing contracts, such as commercial lease agreements and purchase and sale agreements; obtaining a liquor license, common victualer license, and other state/municipal permits and approvals; and appearing before state courts, agencies, and local boards. In conjunction with that work, Liz advises clients on best practices so that they maintain compliance with laws and regulations. Additionally, alcoholic beverage licensees turn to Liz to defend them in actions brought under the Massachusetts franchise law, M.G.L. c. 138, § 25E.

In 2015, the Treasurer of the Commonwealth appointed Liz as a Commissioner of the Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission (ABCC), and Liz served in that role until 2019 when she founded Lashway Law LLC. In 2022, Lashway Law LLC became Of Counsel to Archstone Law Group. Prior to working for the ABCC, Liz spent nearly a decade as an Assistant City Solicitor for the City of Cambridge.

Liz was elected as a Wellesley Town Meeting Member in 2021 and was appointed as a Hearing Officer for the Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers in 2018 and in 2021 for three-year terms each. She is a Steering Committee member of the Boston Bar Association’s Solo and Small Firm Committee. Liz also co-chairs Schofield Cares and is a co-founder of Wellesley Cares, both of which support families of Wellesley students in need. Liz lives in Wellesley with her husband and two children. She is a soccer coach, hockey mom, and long-distance runner (2002, 2008 Boston Marathons; numerous half marathons and road races).

Representative Experience

  • Represents and advises domestic and foreign alcoholic beverage suppliers with regard to the Massachusetts franchise law and alcohol beverage regulations.

  • Represented non-profit corporation before state agency in taxpayer petition.

  • Represents alcohol retailers, hospitality businesses, and individuals seeking retail liquor licenses in Massachusetts cities and towns.

  • Advises entities with regard to seeking state-issued liquor licenses.

  • Drafts business agreements, including, for example, commercial lease agreements, shareholder agreements, purchase and sale agreements, and business associate agreements.

  • Represents clients in disputes before state agencies, including the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission.

  • Represents clients before state and local regulatory boards, including local zoning boards.

  • Successfully represented a municipality in a widely publicized civil jury trial.

  • Argued cases before the Massachusetts Appeals Court and the Supreme Judicial Court.

  • Drafts various policies, including employment policies, for liquor licensees regarding the safe sale and service of alcoholic beverages.

Speaking Engagements

  • Massachusetts Alcohol Beverage Sales & Distribution Law. Practical Tips for Navigating the Three-Tier System from Vine to Table, MCLE Panelist (February 2021)