1).  An Oversight of Convenience?

       Licensing Act 2003 - Licence Review Appeal

We acted for a convenience store off-licence in its appeal to the magistrates' court following the revocation of its alcohol licence for selling to underage persons. The shop had previously been represented by other solicitors. Following our service upon the local authority of a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 we  discovered that the premises had successfully passed a test purchase prior to the original review; a fact which 'conveniently' had not previously been disclosed by the local authority. This evidence was extremely important in the circumstances.

This case highlighted the importance of carrying out full investigations when preparing cases, and the usefulness of the 2000 Act in supporting that function.

 
2).  It's good to talk.

      Licensing Act 2003 - Licence Review 

Our client, a small public house, faced sanctions following a number of failed test purchases for underage sales. The police sought to illustrate that they had failed to heed previous warnings. However, we were able to defeat the police application by showing that they had failed to properly communicate their intentions to the actual Premises Licence holder, and had only previously dealt with junior staff.

The lesson? The spirit (pardon the pun) of the Act and guidance is that communication is key.