Each time you host drinks, you risk prosecution

future. And there are signs of a growing regulatory intolerance.

Last year, police warned hairdressers in Dunedin against offering a glass of wine to clients. Wine as part of the service is considered a ‘‘sale’’. More recently, police opposed bowling club applications for licence renewal on a technical interpretation of the law, rather than evidence of alcohol-related harm.

And if I break the law??

The penalties for non-compliance are hefty. You could be fined $40,000 or jailed for three months, for sale and supply, or up to $20,000 for supply alone. Attendees can also be fined $2000 just for being there.

What does a licence do?

A licence will protect you from prosecution. But the act only allows licences for events where alcohol is ‘‘sold’’ to attendees, so you’ll have to show you will be ‘‘selling’’ drinks. The definition of sale is broad. It could include social club contributions. You can also charge a fee or ask people to pay a koha on entry.

So where does this leave us?

Every time you host drinks, you run the risk of prosecution. If alcohol isn’t a substantial part of your event you should be OK. But you can’t always control people attending events and police may come knocking if things go wrong.

If you want to play it safe, you could hire a licensed caterer or relocate to the pub. Or you can get a licence to cover regular workplace drinks.

Aimee Dartnall is a solicitor at commercial-regulatory law firm Franks Ogilvie.