Licensing - pricing Information

Freeths advise on the full range of licensing applications and can provide a full licensing administration service should you need it. With many years’ experience, we are highly ranked in legal guides, Chambers and The Legal 500.

As we have extensive experience in preparing applications on behalf of our clients, we are able to give you a good estimate of the time it will take us to complete this work for you. Costs will be calculated according to the level of experience of the representative you choose to represent you.

Our standard hourly rates are:

Partner	£292 per hour plus VAT
Legal Assistant	£82 per hour plus VAT

 

Examples of the average amount of work involved in a Premises Licence Application:

Application	Average time required for legal work
Premises Licence Application	4 to 6 hours
Variation Application	3 to 5 hours

The exact number of hours it will take to prepare your application depends on the circumstances of your case. Factors which could have an impact on the cost of your matter include:

• Type and size of the premises
• Likelihood of representations from either residents and / or Responsible Authorities (e.g. the police and fire services)
• Size of your estate

On instruction we will provide a bespoke quotation based on our level of involvement and the level of representation you choose. We are also happy to offer a fixed cost service.

Our service includes:

• Taking your instructions and advising you as to how you can promote the licensing objectives within your application;
• Advising you about the type of plans you are required to submit with your application;
• Completing the application form for a new premises licence (including the operating schedule) in accordance with your instructions and submitting this to the local Licensing Authority along with suitable plans. You must provide suitable plans;
• Providing guidance on the fee levels payable to the Licensing Authority;
• Preparing copies of the premises licence application for disclosure to the Responsible Authorities and serving copies of the application on the Responsible Authorities;
• Drafting the notices advertising the premises licence application and submitting the notice to the local newspaper(s);
• Arranging with you for you to display the notice(s) advertising the premises licence application and advising where and how this should be done by you in order to comply with the requirements of the Licensing Act 2003;
• Providing a Designated Premises Supervisor (DPS) consent form for signature by a personal licence holder proposed by you;
• Checking the licence once granted and correcting any errors with the local Licensing Authority.

Our service does not include:

• Obtaining suitable plans;
• Attending pre-consultation meetings with the Licensing Authority or Responsible Authorities, or their fee for this meeting;
• Dealing with or advising you in relation to queries or representations received from either the Responsible Authorities or other interested parties;
• Advising on varying the licence;
• Attendance and representation at a licensing sub-committee hearing of the Responsible Authority. If representations are received and attendance and representation at a licensing sub-committee is required then we will provide a separate estimate for this work.

Disbursements

In addition to our costs, you may need to pay some disbursements (associated costs payable to third parties). We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. The likely disbursements are:

• Licensing Application Fee: This will be based on the rateable value of the premises to which the application relates;
• Advertising Costs: This will be dependent on the newspaper in which the advertisement appears but the cost will usually be between £100 and £500 (plus VAT) per application.

Timescales

We will normally be able to prepare your application in readiness for submission of your application within 2 working days of receiving your full supporting documents. We will let you know at the earliest opportunity if it is likely to take longer than this.

Applications usually take 5 to 6 weeks from receipt of your instructions and supporting documentation. This is on the basis of the application being relatively straightforward and unopposed.

If your application attracts representations and we cannot reach an agreement, a hearing before the Licensing Committee will be necessary.  If this happens, the application will take longer to process.

We appreciate that running a licensed business is challenging, with an ever growing list of expenditure impacting on your bottom line. At Freeths, we will be as flexible as we can be in agreeing our costs.