Griffith & Hughes PLLC, TABC Licensing and Alcohol Law

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Griffith & Hughes PLLC is a Texas law firm that, by its own description, concentrates its entire practice on Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) licensing and alcohol law. The firm helps businesses obtain, defend, and maintain Texas alcohol licenses and permits, from the first permit strategy decision through enforcement defense, tax audits, and litigation with local governments. Its office is in the Arlington Downs Tower in Arlington, the same building that houses TABC’s Arlington regional office, and it represents businesses throughout Texas. The firm’s website is griffithhughes.com.

At a glance

Item Detail
Firm Griffith & Hughes PLLC (formerly the Griffith Firm)
Focus TABC licensing and Texas alcohol law, exclusively
History founded as the Griffith Firm in 2006; renamed Griffith & Hughes in 2020
Forums the State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH), county courts, district courts, and appellate courts
Office 2225 E Randol Mill Road, Suites 110 and 106, Arlington, TX 76011
Phone <a href="tel:+18175629648">817-562-9648</a>
Email <a href="mailto:info@griffithhughes.com">info@griffithhughes.com</a>
Clients restaurants, bars and nightclubs, package stores, private clubs, hotels, convenience stores and gas stations, breweries, wineries, distilleries, and entertainment and event venues

The team

Timothy E. Griffith, Founding Attorney (Emeritus). A TABC-law attorney since 1998 and a graduate of South Texas College of Law, he worked as a TABC staff attorney from 1998 to 2006, prosecuting permit holders before county courts and SOAH. The firm reports that during that time he litigated $665,892 in civil penalties and was involved in the cancellation or denial of 128 permits. He founded the Griffith Firm in 2006.

Ryan S. Hughes, Managing Attorney. He supervises the firm’s work on TABC violation defense, licensing and compliance, dram shop defense, the purchase and sale of alcohol businesses, Comptroller mixed beverage audits, private club formation, protests, and suits to compel certification of TABC applications. He holds a business degree from Texas Tech University (2012) and a J.D. from Texas A&M University School of Law (2016), and has practiced liquor law exclusively since then. Direct line: 817-562-9655.

Edgar M. Korzeniowski, Senior Associate Attorney. Practicing liquor law exclusively since 2015, he focuses on licensing, compliance, administrative litigation of Code violations, denials, and protests. He previously spent more than five and a half years as a Senior Staff Attorney at TABC, advising its auditing, enforcement, and licensing divisions, and earlier served as an Administrative Law Judge for the Washington State Office of Administrative Hearings. He holds a J.D. from Willamette University College of Law and is admitted in Texas (2012) and Washington (2004). Direct line: 817-562-7266.

Tana Travis Kerss, Director of Licensing (not a licensed attorney). She worked for TABC for 32 years, beginning as an enforcement agent in 1989 and rising to Lieutenant, and spent her last five years as Regional Licensing Supervisor for the region covering the Dallas/Fort Worth and East Texas areas. Her experience includes the development and implementation of AIMS, TABC’s online licensing system. She holds a TCOLE Master Peace Officer License and is President of the TABC Retired Agents Association.

Minnie Burks, Senior Licensing Specialist (not a licensed attorney). She spent 14 years at TABC as a Senior Licensing Investigative Analyst before retiring in December 2024, processing thousands of applications, reviewing temporary event requests, and assisting with the implementation of AIMS.

Practice areas

In the firm’s own terms, its work falls into two groups.

Licensing and formation:

  • TABC licensing for restaurants, bars, hotels, venues, convenience stores, package stores, manufacturers, and private clubs, including identifying legal obstacles early and securing local and Comptroller certifications;
  • structuring and forming alcohol businesses so ownership complies with the Tied House rules;
  • private club formation;
  • concession and management agreements that keep the permittee in control of its permit;
  • due diligence and reporting for the purchase and sale of licensed businesses;
  • variances from city distance ordinances; and
  • consumable hemp authorizations from the Texas Department of State Health Services.

Disputes, defense, and compliance:

  • defense of alleged TABC violations and emergency suspension orders;
  • dram shop (liquor liability) defense;
  • Comptroller mixed beverage tax audits and TABC audits of food and beverage certificate holders and private clubs;
  • challenges to city alcohol regulations, including suits to compel certification;
  • protests of original and renewal applications; and
  • hearings before SOAH.

How the firm approaches a licensing matter

The firm describes six stages: permit strategy and tier analysis before a location is chosen; wet or dry and location verification with the city or county; coordination of the city, county, and Comptroller certifications; preparation and filing of the AIMS application with notices and signage; resolution of issues, including litigation when a local government refuses to certify; and post-approval compliance, such as safe harbor documentation, written alcohol policies, seller-server training guidance, and audit preparation.

Track record, as stated by the firm

The firm’s published materials report:

  • more than 85 years of combined TABC experience across the team;
  • more than 400 cases handled before SOAH, county courts, district courts, and appellate courts;
  • hundreds of private clubs formed and more than 100 distance variance requests handled statewide; and
  • six-figure reductions negotiated on multiple Comptroller mixed beverage audit assessments.

Insights

The firm publishes on developments in alcohol and related regulation, including “158-Year-Old Federal Ban Against Home Distilling Held to be Unconstitutional,” “Navigating the Haze of Current Consumable Hemp Product Regulations,” and “Death Penalty Sanctions for Liquor Permit for a Single Non-Compliant Sale of Consumable Hemp Products.” Because the hemp and home-distilling areas continue to change and parts remain before the courts, positions in these pieces should be checked against current sources.

Office and contact

Griffith & Hughes PLLC, 2225 E Randol Mill Road, Suites 110 and 106, Arlington, TX 76011.

The firm notes that communication through its website does not establish an attorney-client relationship. This profile was compiled from the firm’s published website content (firm overview, practice-area pages, and attorney and staff biographies) as of June 2026, and the figures, credentials, and matter references in it are the firm’s own.

This article is general information about Texas alcoholic beverage law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Statutes and TABC rules change; confirm current requirements with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission, the relevant city or county, or a licensed Texas attorney before acting.

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