Cordato Partners
Travel Law Practice

Cordato Partners Lawyers are experts in travel law. They specialise in providing a full range of legal services to the travel, leisure and hospitality industries.


Expert travel and tourism advice

Anthony Cordato is a specialist travel and tourism lawyer and heads the travel law practice group. He is the author of Australian Travel & Tourism Law. He has an unsurpassed depth of knowledge, experience and technical expertise in travel law, leisure law, tourism law and hospitality law in Australia.

Now in its 4th edition, Australian Travel & Tourism Law contains 200 case studies which graphically illustrate the law applicable to the travel industry. The book is a resource for the travel student and anyone working in the travel industry, with chapters dealing with legal responsibilities of travel agents and tour operators, travel advertising and selling travel, booking conditions, travel insurance and the Travel Agents Act.

Click to download details and an order form

Cordato Partners act for the travel agent, tour operator, airline, hotel, and restaurant and function centres. The law has many names, including travel law, tourism law, hospitality law, holiday law, leisure law and even vacation law!

As specialist tourism lawyers, Cordato Partners provides legal services to deal with all legal issues which can arise in the course of operating a travel, leisure or hospitality business.

We are always looking for new clients in the travel industry and particularly enjoy dealing with difficult, frustrating and “too hard basket” problems.

We carry out commercial work and litigation:-

Commercial Work

Our business advisory and documentation work is specifically tailored to the travel and hospitality industries. It includes:-

• Travel advertising
• Tour and cruise booking conditions
• Sale and purchases of businesses and franchises
• Agreements to appoint travel agents, resorts, suppliers etc.
• Protection of copyright and trade marks
• Tourism employment law and HR support
• Travel websites
• Leases, property sales and purchases

Litigation – (Court work)

We have full experience of acting for the travel industry (and the occasional consumer) in holiday law disputes in both Australian and overseas Courts.

• Disputes between travel agents, wholesalers and airlines
• Travel consumer claims
• Air travel passenger claims
• Enforcing contractual indemnities
• Warsaw and Athens conventions
• Overseas and interstate claims
• Personal injury claims
• Travel compensation law
• Travel insurance law
• Defending class actions
• Hotel and resort guest claims

We maintain a commercial approach to litigation in that we believe that a commercially negotiated settlement is often better than a day in Court. We will advise you of the likely costs of any legal action in a timely and sensible manner.

Hot topics - Click on bullets below

• Passenger wins on liability, Carnival wins on damages, in the Ruby Princess class action for the COVID cruise
• Whether it's on the football field or on a cruise ship, it's the captain's job to discipline anyone who is out of line. But is it false imprisonment if a ship's captain confines the offender to their cabin?
• Cancellation insurance does not cover cancellations due to travel restrictions / border closures – as ‘Big Red Bash’ music festival promoter found out to its cost
• New tax rules apply if you are employing working holiday makers
• Do you need to wear a helmet when flying economy class?
  Thinking of flying? Can't decide on an aisle or a window seat?
• Stay at home if you are not fully vaxxed in NSW and work in retail, hospitality or leisure
  If you work in non-essential retail, hospitality or leisure businesses in NSW and choose to remain unvaccinated, you are not welcome to come to work and may receive a dismissal notice, under the latest NSW Public Health Order.
• White Island Volcano victims win the right to sue Royal Caribbean Cruises in Florida
  After a hard-fought battle, the Browitt family can recover compensation through the courts in Florida
• The ill-fated White Island volcano tour
  What legal fate awaits the 25 badly burnt survivors and the relatives of the 25 dead from the ill-fated White Island volcano tour on 9 December 2019?
• How do ski jet accidents happen?
• Booking a hotel room with Trivago?
  If so, look around to check if the hotel room price is in fact the cheapest.
• Can you claim compensation if you injure yourself on holidays?
  The answer is that it is harder than you think!
• Is viagogo good to buy tickets from? Is viagogo no better than a high pressure salesman when it sells tickets for concerts, sport and theatre? The Judge thought so.
• Partnership disputes - What happens when two owners of a business want to end their partnership?
• COVID-19 has wrecked your travel plans. Do you accept a re-scheduling, a credit note or voucher, or insist on a refund? Click for my guide
• Trivago has been caught red-handed by the Australian Consumer watchdog for giving top ranking to hotels which pay it the most
• There is no absolute right to peace and quiet - especially if you buy next door to a hotel
• Is your boomerang fake? - Little known fact – 80% of boomerangs sold in Australia are not made in Australia. But this may be coming to an end
• Are you thinking about setting up as a tour operator or starting a tour business in Australia? Find out about the seven legal essentials
• What is the law for Airbnb style rentals in Sydney / NSW?
  From 2019, new laws will apply to anyone renting their property for short-term rentals in Sydney / NSW
• Meriton in trouble for filtering out negative guest reviews. The long arm of the law has caught and fined Meriton Suites for manipulating reviews posted by its guests on TripAdvisor, a leading travel and hospitality website.
• NSW gives the green light to owner-occupiers and investors to rent houses and home units for short stay (Airbnb style) rentals
• Dreamworld tragedy highlights legal Duty of Care for theme park guests
• Sleaze has no place in the workplace
• Why good lighting on the stairs reduces liability risk for leisure venues
• The Publican, the Patron, the Drinks and the Punch
• Are you a target for consumer claims?

Short-term Rentals - Click on bullets below

• Do you own a serviced apartment? Do you know what happens to your rents when the manager of your serviced apartment goes broke?
• Airbnb-style short-stay traveller accommodation policy in NSW – the latest update
  Renting out a house or home unit, Airbnb-style, is legal in New South Wales, but you need to follow the new rules if you do.
• Whatever you do, don't annoy the voters! - New laws for Airbnb rentals to start in 2019 in NSW
• New NSW policy welcomes short stay rentals (Airbnb style)
• How to handle Airbnb-style letting in NSW – all you need know
• Help the NSW Govt decide on how to deal with Airbnb style short stay letting!
• Why easy legal compliance is making Airbnb attractive for property owners in Australia
• Airbnb is empowering Boutique Hotels and B&Bs
• NSW Government favours tourists over residents in its short-term holiday letting policy

Airlines - Click on bullets below

• If you suffer stomach pain on an airplane, do you have a claim?
  The question is – Is a stomach pain serious enough to make a claim?
• The Virgin Australia Airlines insolvency. What’s happening to over half the fleet of aircraft that the new owners of Virgin Airlines don’t want?
• Will Virgin have any planes left to fly?
  It’s not the Administrators, the unions or the Government who decides if Virgin planes stay in Australia, it’s all in the hands of the aircraft lessors and financiers.
• Your travel plans have turned to dust due to Coronavirus. Do you cancel? Do you reschedule? Will you receive a refund?
• Airlines advise: Keep well hydrated by drinking enough water. Find out why airlines offer water as soon as the ‘fasten seatbelts sign is turned off
• Airfare Refunds - Airfare refunds are a basic passenger right even if the delay or cancellation is caused by bad weather, air traffic control or industrial action
• What rules apply for claiming compensation for injuries or death on an aircraft?
• What rights do passenger have to a fare refund if the flight is delayed or cancelled?
• Do airline cancellation fees and charge fees annoy you? Help is on its way
• Will 'Yoga or Yogurt' replace 'Tea or Coffee' on the Qantas inflight menu?
• The dangers of flying a drone near aircraft, and what are the chances of your airplane hitting a drone?
• Australian domestic airlines agree to an ‘opt in’ model for extra charges
• Do hidden extra charges annoy you when booking flights or places to stay online?
• Can hot tea served on a plane cause back pain?
• The hazards of Air Travel
• US Visa Waiver Program (ESTA)
• Now sit back, relax and enjoy the flight! - a case about aircraft seating.
  

Travel Agents and Tour Operators  - Click on bullets below

• Is your liability waiver effective? Skydiving is a high risk activity. But it's not the only tourist activity that has risks
• If your flight is cancelled because of COVID-19, what are your rights?
• Your travel plans have turned to dust due to Coronavirus. Do you cancel? Do you reschedule? Will you receive a refund?
• If you are a small business, you need effective digital marketing to attract new customers and keep existing customers
• Why hot air ballooning is risky – Don’t wear a scarf if you are hot air ballooning
• Are you thinking about setting up as a tour operator or starting a tour business in Australia? Find out about the seven legal essentials
• Fare refunds for flight delays and cancellations are now easier in Australia
• If a travel agent books an international flight, are they legally liable if they fail to advise the visa requirements for the flight destination?
• Is lunch included in my all-inclusive tour price?
• Has another business started using your name? What can/must you do to stop them?
• There’s no longer any Travel Agents Licensing in Australia
• Visas and passports can be costly!
• Just how suitable is that tour?
• It pays to double check availability!
• US Visa Waiver Program (ESTA)

We also offer a full service property practice.

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