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Our licensing experts are the only team in the North West ranked in the top tier of the Legal 500, we come highly recommended with “an unrivalled reputation for licensing work.”
Kuits’ specialist licensing law team advises businesses across England and Wales on all aspects of alcohol, entertainment and premises licensing. Whether you are opening your first venue, acquiring an existing licensed business, launching a large-scale hospitality development or dealing with a licensing review, our experienced licensing lawyers provide practical, commercial advice tailored to your objectives.
We work with businesses of every size, from independent restaurants, pubs and bars to national operators, hotel groups, developers and leisure businesses. Our licensing team handles hundreds of applications each year and is recognised for its expertise in obtaining licences in challenging locations, including cumulative impact areas and contested applications.
As the only licensing team in the North West ranked in the top tier of Legal 500, we are trusted to advise some of the UK’s most recognisable hospitality brands.
Based in Manchester city centre, our licensing experts regularly advise clients throughout Greater Manchester, the North West and across England and Wales. We act for businesses operating in some of the country’s most vibrant hospitality and leisure destinations, helping them secure permissions needed to launch, grow and protect their businesses.
Our clients include operators in:
Wherever your business is located, we can provide strategic licensing advice and representation.
Our specialist licensing lawyers advise on all aspects of alcohol and entertainment licensing, including:
Whether you are opening a new bar, restaurant, pub, hotel, event venue or leisure destination, we can manage the application process from start to finish, helping secure the permissions your business needs to operate successfully.
As businesses evolve, licences often need updating. We advice on variations relating to opening hours, layout changes, activities and operating schedules.
We regularly deal with premises licence transfers, Designated Premises Supervisor appointments and other operational changes to ensure business continuity.
We advice individuals and operators on obtaining personal licences and understanding their legal responsibilities.
Our team has extensive experience representing applicants before licensing committees and presenting complex applications where objections have been raised by responsible authorities or local residents.
We provide urgent advice where licences are at risk, helping operators respond to enforcement action, reviews and compliance issues.
Where necessary, we advise on and conduct appeals following licensing decisions.
Our licensing lawyers are recognised for obtaining licences in cumulative impact areas throughout England and Wales.
We lodge hundreds of applications for tables and chairs licenses on a yearly basis.
Our licensing lawyers are particularly well known within the leisure and hospitality sector. We advise:
Helping restaurant operators obtain licences, outdoor dining permissions and late-night trading permissions.
Supporting operators with new licence applications, transfers, variations and licensing strategy.
Providing licensing advice as part of wider hotel development, acquisition and operational projects.
Advising on temporary event notices, alcohol licensing and event management requirements.
Working alongside our commercial property team to secure licensing permissions for mixed-use developments, food halls, hospitality destinations and regeneration schemes.
Kuits is the only licensing team in the North West ranked in the top tier of Legal 500. The directory notes the team’s “unrivalled reputation for licensing work”.
We advise clients across England and Wales on some of the most complex and high-profile licensing matters.
Our licensing lawyers are part of one of the largest leisure and hospitality legal teams in the North West, enabling us to provide joined-up advice on every aspect of running and growing a licensed business.
A premises licence application, made to the local authority, can take anywhere between 4–8 weeks once submitted.
There is a 28-day consultation period, which begins on the day after the application is lodged. During this period, members of the public and responsible authorities can object to the application if their objection is based on one or more of the four licensing objectives.
If no objections are received during the consultation period, the licence can be granted on the 29th day. If objections are received and no negotiations can be reached to resolve them, a hearing will be arranged within 20 working days.
Yes, a premises licence can be transferred.
Clients will normally transfer a licence where there has been a change in ownership, a signed consent form will need to be provided by the existing licence holder to the new applicant. Where a signed consent cannot be provided, the applicant will need to demonstrate that they have taken all reasonable steps to obtain that consent.
There is no limit to the number of times a premises licence can be transferred. If a licence holder becomes insolvent or dies, the licence will automatically lapse. There is then a 28-day period in which the licence can be reinstated and transferred to another entity. In this situation, no consent form is required, provided that the applicant can demonstrate that the licence has lapsed.
A transfer application takes immediate effect; however, the police have 14 days in which they may submit a representation against the application.
A DPS (Designated Premises Supervisor) is the person who is responsible for the day-to-day control premises of the premises.
To nominate someone as the DPS, an application must be made to the council, and the individual must also hold a personal licence. The application takes immediate effect, but there is the same 14-day consultation period with the police as there is for a transfer application.
As it is not practical for the DPS to be on site 24 hours a day, the form of delegation comes into play. This confirms that the DPS has authorised members of staff to carry out alcohol sales who don’t have a personal licence in their absence.
That said, it is often beneficial to have more than one personal licence holder within the business. Should the DPS suddenly leave the business or be absent due to long-term sickness and therefore no longer be able to fulfil the role, having additional personal licence holders within the business can help ensure that a replacement DPS can be appointed immediately. This is important because the sale of alcohol cannot take place unless a DPS is named on the premises licence.
There is no legal requirement to have a specific number of personal licence holders on site at any one time, provided that there is a named DPS in place and that staff who sell alcohol have been properly authorised through the delegation process. The number of personal licence holders on site at any given time is therefore at the discretion of the business, unless the premises licence itself requires a certain number of personal licence holders to be present.
Another advantage of having multiple personal licence holders is that they will have completed training covering the legal responsibilities associated with the sale of alcohol under the Licensing Act 2003.
A Cumulative Impact Area (also known as a Cumulative Impact Zone or stress area) is a designated area where councils may place restrictions on the granting of licences. This is generally because there are already a high number of licensed premises in the area, which may be contributing to issues such as crime and disorder or public nuisance.
Some councils use a traffic-light system to indicate the level of cumulative impact or stress within different areas.
Should you wish to play live or recorded music after 11pm, you will need to apply for a premises licence to include the provision of live and recorded music.
You will not need to apply for a licence to include the provision of live or recorded music as long as:
The Live Music Act 2012 came into force to deregulate certain types of live music, subject to specific conditions and limitations.
We advise clients on a case-by-case basis, so please get in touch if you are unsure.
Yes, we represent clients at hearings should they wish us to do so. Please contact us to discuss in more detail if required.
Our fee for a premises licence application is quoted on a case-by-case basis. There is always an advert (normally in the region of £300-£500) and there is also a fee payable to the council based upon the rateable value of the premises. We are happy to have an initial conversation with you to establish what your proposals are and provide you with a fee quote.
We certainly can, we act for clients up and down the country, in city centres and in the countryside.
Whether you are opening a new venue, acquiring licensed premises, applying for a variation or responding to a licence review, our experienced team can help.
Contact our team today to discuss your licensing requirements and receive practical, commercial advice tailored to your business.
We can assist in advising on drafting and lodging the Notice of Appeal....
We have obtained licences for clients in Cumulative Impact areas across the country....
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We are experienced in negotiating with authorities....
We offer advice to other legal professionals on licensing aspects of matters. ...
Confident, experienced advocates with a long history of representing applicants....
We advise on the whole process of obtaining a personal licence. ...
We lodge hundreds of licence applications annually....
Helping clients maximise trading area. ...
We advice on transfers, DPS variations and temporary event notices. ...
Assistance with variations to licences. ...
We advise on legal matters for clients in the leisure and hospitality sector. ...
Kuits hotel solicitors will advise you on the legal issues that arise when running a hotel. ...
Real quality and experience throughout the licensing team. Exceptional industry knowledge and relationships with local authorities, particularly in the North West.