A downtown Halifax bar at the centre of a criminal case and civil lawsuits is now the subject of one of the longest closures ever issued to a liquor licensee in the province.

The Halifax Alehouse must shut its doors for 45 consecutive days as a penalty stemming from charges under the Liquor Control Act following a death and alleged assault outside the bar in 2022.

"It is a significant penalty," Roland Deveau, panel chairman for the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board, said at a hearing Tuesday. …