LIQUOR LICENCES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27521, 16 October 1950, Page 6

LIQUOR LICENCES

Unsuccessful Applicants NO RIGHT OF APPEAL No general right of appeal by unsuccessful applicants for liquor licences—unless applicants are objectors within the meaning of the Licensing Act, 1908—can be brought against a licensing committee decision granting licences to others. The Licensing Control Commission has ruled that an applicant may appeal against a committee’s refusal to grant a licence, but he cannot appeal against the granting of someone else’s application, unless he is to object on the grounds of a licensee’s or applicant’s character or reputation, or the nature and conditions of the premises to be licensed. The commission in an appeal finding released on Saturday night, points out that in the case of wholesale licence applications, legislation does not appear to provide a similar clause for “ objectors.” “ The Amendment Act 1948, has not created any further right of objection in respect of wholesale licences,” the finding says..

The Commission’s decision gives notice that at Hamilton on October 27 it will dismiss appeals against the Waikato Licensing Committee's grant of a publican’s licence to Hector Delves Hood, at Tokoroa, and against the Piako Licensing Committee’s grant of a wholesale licence to Lovell Paul Allan Potter, at Te Aroha. The appeals were lodged by four of the unsuccessful applicants for the wholesale licence at Te Aroha, and by the Matamata County Council, on behalf of a local trust (to be formed), for the publican’s licence. The appellants cases were based on Section 65 of Licensing Amendment Act, 1948. The Commission found that appeals under Sub-section Cl) of this section were limited to decisions (a) refusing that grant, or transfer or renewal of licences, and (b) ordering a cancellation or determination of licences. “Nowhere in those portions of the section is there any power to appeal against the grant of any application,” says the decision. “It would seem clear that in cases where a committee has in the exercise of its discretion granted a licence there can be no appeal, even if there are ‘other parties to the application,’ who have objected to it.”

The commission found that no wider ground for appeal against the granting of a licence were contained in the remainder of section 65. The commission’s judgment says that the legislation set out in Sections 64 and 65 of the Amendment Act 1948, may require clarification. “It would not be proper for the commission to say that the legislature should give all applicants for licences a general right of appeal.’’ . . The commission was of the opinion that the right of appeal was deliberately limited says the decision. “It is not in the public interest that the operation of licences granted by licensing committees should be long delayed. That would undoubtedly be the result of general appeals either to the Supreme Court or to the commission, or both, followed perhaps by different results and further delays and possibly by reference back to the licensing committees for the reconsideration of application,”