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MAGISTRATES AND LICENSES

IMPORTANT JUDGMENT, In the Queen'a Bench Division on Monday there came on, before Mr Justice Field and Mr Justice Wills, the oase of Sharp v Wakefleld and others It was a licensing appeal, which Involved a question of considerable importance. The facts were that at the general annual licensing meeting m September last, William Ridding applied to the vVeßtraoreland justices for the renewsljof the license of the Low Bridge Inn at Kentmere, and the application was refused. Against this decision there was an appeal to Kendal, and it wcs oonteuded that the justices were not entitled, upon an application for the renewal of the license of a house against whioh there was no complaint, to inquire Into the wants of the neighbourhood; and to refuse the renewal upon the ground that the honse was removed from police supervision, and that the necessity pf the neighbourhood did not require the iioense to be continued. The Court of Quarter Sessions, however, upheld the' decision of the juatioes below, and from the decision at quarter sessions the matter came before their Lordships by way of further appeal. The matter was argued at length some days ago, and on Monday judgment was given. ' Mr Justice Field, m the course of an elaborate judgment, said that the question turned upou (he construction to be put upon the Act of 1828 ; for he oonld not find, as ho had contended, that either by legtslatfpn or the construction paced upon statutes by jadgea, it had limited the discretion of the juatioea aa applicable to this case. He had always understood that the justices had a very large and wide discretion, and he was surprised to hear it said that this opinion was absolutely wrong, because modern legislation had altogether altered the law, and that, therefore, the vritholding of th'a licence was not within the competence of the justices. The Act of 1828 said that the justices Bbquld tuey* pnqaally ! lor the purpose of granting ' lioent/ei to persons keeping or about to keep inns, ale houses, or victualling housea, and they were to grant licenses to such persons as they should m the exercise of their diioretion i think fit and proper, w^s that j theao word,s limited the discretion of the I action to this —to oonaider whether the applicant for the house was a proper person, and the premises were also proper for the purpose. Section 9, however, said that they should have full power to deqlde touohlng t'^e gaantJug, wUholdlng, or transferring of any licence, aud also to decide opon of_ the ger^on, His' lordship wenj In detail ttsip,qgh the proYMqn olf the Etoathoqao A-cts of 1830 and 18G9 and the general Act a of 1872 and 1874; « n 4 ftlgo through various decided oaeea, In gonalaglon, be. aald that he saw no Htktotx either upon the old statutes or the naw statutes, or upon the old oises or the new osses, to throw the smallest doubt upon, the proposition that In granting a Uoenoe, whether a new one or ono by way of renewal, to cast any doubt upon this —that the jastlcea had absolute discretion, that was power unfettered so far as the discretion was concerned; atxd while tho powgr was not e^erolije'd "corruptly or arßlftarfly. Ho thought therefore, that it was competent for the justices below and for justices at Quarter Sessions to wlthhold, this Hqorbgi In the way tldat they , w »d done,— Appeal dlamUqad, with QQOti,

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/AG18880702.2.21

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1882, 2 July 1888, Page 3

Word count
Tapeke kupu
579

MAGISTRATES AND LICENSES Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1882, 2 July 1888, Page 3

MAGISTRATES AND LICENSES Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1882, 2 July 1888, Page 3

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