Appeal and objections against licence applications
Licence application appeals
If you would like to seek an appeal of the authority’s decision on a licence application, there are some rules you need to follow. You can appeal if:
To lodge an appeal we recommend you seek an independent legal advice first.
Refused or suspended applications
As an applicant you may appeal to the Sherriff against the decision.
The appeal should be lodged with the Court within 28 days of you being notified of the licensing authority’s decision. However, the right of appeal is only available if you have exhausted all available procedures in terms of stating your case to the licensing authority.
Your appeal will only be successful if the Sheriff considers that while the licensing authority was making a decision, they:
- erred in law
- based their decision on an incorrect material fact
- acted contrary to natural justice
- exercised their discretion in an unreasonable manner
If on receiving the decision of the Sheriff you are still not satisfied, you may make a further appeal on a point of law to the Court of Session within 28 days of receiving the Sheriff’s decision.
Appealing to decision to grant a licence
If you have lodged a relevant objection or representation in respect of an application which has been granted and you wish to appeal this decision, you can appeal to the Sheriff Court in the same way as that of an aggrieved applicant.
Your appeal will be considered on the same basis and therefore will only be successful if one of the grounds listed has been deemed to apply in terms of the licensing authority’s decision.