A HELLS Angel's sentence for a "pub fight" was too harsh because the judge considered the man's motorcycle gang membership when weighing up his chances of rehabilitation, a court heard.

Nicholas Frank "Shonky" Cassidy is serving a non-parole period of 15 months behind bars for aggravated assault.

The attack on two brothers at the Airport Hotel in 2007 stemmed from a fight Cassidy had with them earlier in the evening over a joke about Cassidy's weight.

Cassidy, along with James Scott Parnwell Knight and four other Hells Angels associates returned to the pub, and a brawl followed, which the sentencing judge labelled "frightening". Both Cassidy and Knight are appealing their sentences.

Cassidy's lawyer Marie Shaw QC yesterday argued in the Court of Criminal Appeal that there was a failure to apply the law to the facts and issues in dispute.

She also said the judge had placed too much weight on Cassidy's involvement with a motorcycle gang when considering rehabilitation prospects.

"One of the difficulties here is that the inference that everyone in a motorcycle gang is necessarily a criminal ... is unfairly made," she said.

Ms Shaw said Cassidy, a father of two young children, did not have an extensive prior record and had a stable family and work situation.

But Justice Dean Mildren said motorcycle gang membership was an indication of character.

"If you're going to lie down with dogs you can't exactly complain if you catch fleas," he said. "If you consort with people who have a reputation ... it affects your own reputation."