legal advice

[twinkle05]

a friend asked me to help him run a club he wanted to use my name as the personal licence holder because the police didnt really like his name where he was from and it would look better on paper,
so i agreed as a friend and the guy who had had the bar before us had to sign the PL over to say it was ok so we opened the bar not knowing the police had to have a say, and the police came and closed the bar saying we were selling alcohol illieagally they offered me a caution but my friend said not to take it as we would win the case,
the bar was licenced to sell and the guys name was still on the PL i wish i had taken the caution now! my court hearing is not till april and i might have a fantasic job abroad does anybody know if i can take the caution now instead or if i can move the court hearing forward!

[HowardKennitby]

as I understand it, if you have refused a cation, the CPS will choose to prosecute or drop the case. It seems they have chosen to prosecute so you must take your chance in court.

Can I respectfully suggest you need to choose your 'friends' with more care.

[twinkle05]

thank you, i know do you know if the courts will bring the case forward if asked and will it prolong or be settled on that day?

[HowardKennitby]

As far as I am aware the only thing that happens to court hearings is that they are put back. What does your solicitor advise?

[Maydup]

Don't get your hopes up for moving the hearing, its more likely to be delayed than brought forward I'm afraid. If they had an earlier date they'd have given it to you in the beginning.

[twinkle05]

im going to speak to one tomorrow..im gutted i cant just take the caution now! and dont worry that friend has been erased out my life!

[EDDIE51]

You were offered a chance to accept a caution but refused it.
Sorry , now you have to wait for the case to come up, you can not move the case forward to suit your self.
I do not understand what the offence was. A bar needs a licence and it has to have a premises supervisor. The premises supervisor needs a personal licence. If the premises supervisor changes, the the licence is no longer valid and there has to be an application for a new licence. One personal licence holder can not sign their personal licence over to another person. To get a personal licence you have to pass the licence holders course and get the certificate you can't just sign it over to someone else. I am a personal licence holder myself

[twinkle05]

their was a dps on site if thats what your on about?

[twinkle05]

sorry misunderstanding i was asked to be the premisis licence holder..

[EDDIE51]

I still do not understand what you are saying . <the guy who had the bar before us had to sign the PL over to say it was OK>
You CAN NOT just sign a premises licence or a personal licence over to someone else. If any of the details on a premises licence change , for instance the DPS changes, there has to be a new application to the licenceing justices for a licence. The police have to agree to the new DPS as well .

[Maydup]

I think that's why they're in court Eddie - no Prem Licence and a Personal Licence in the wrong name. Lucky to be offered a caution at all I think.

[twinkle05]

its a long story!!! the bar was once run by a guy lets call him steve, the bar was then shut for months but steves name was still on the premisis licence then we took over we went to the town hall to get papers for steve to be releaved of anything to do with the bar, but the town hall said it was ok for us to open the bar, they didnt tell us we had to go see the police so we opened the bar! the police then came shut the bar on a section 19 and we then had to go to the police station with the dps lets call her sue and sue was on site the night the police turned up! now do you get me, but the bar had a licence to sell and we had a dps on site and steve was their too their argument is we had no dps on site and no licence to sell drinks!!

[EDDIE51]

I think the problem here is that 'Steve' who ran the bar was regarded by the police as unsuitable , probably because of previous convictions, and 'Sue' was in effect 'fronting' for him. If that was the case the police would object. Now you have agreed to put your name to it and the police have objected because they know 'Steve' is really the person running bar not you.
You have been conned but as I said now you just have to wait for the court case.

[buildersmate]

The council's comment about it being OK to re-open the bar perhaps relates to the planning consent side of things. The premises would still separately need a licence.