Other Areas of Practice at Winrows Law

Other Areas of Practice at Winrows Law

Regulatory Law

If you’re in a regulated industry or sector, it’s important to understand the regulations that affect your business. We can guide you through your regulatory requirements and help you stay compliant with practical, sector-specific advice. We can also help you identify potential regulatory issues in the future and help you plan ahead to overcome them as effectively as possible.

If you’re under investigation or facing disciplinary action, we can give you confidential and professional support to limit the damage to your professional and personal life. We also defend businesses and individuals in court. This first-hand experience with the regulators and their processes means you get the very best defence from the start where all potential solutions can be examined.

When you’re running your business, the last thing you need is to be disrupted by stressful and damaging regulatory investigations. If an investigation or disciplinary action is approaching or is already underway, contact us as soon as possible. The earlier we are involved the better the potential outcome.

Alcohol and Taxi Licensing Law

Licensing Law governs many business types including the sale and supply of alcohol, late night refreshment, entertainment and other areas like taxis.

Our licencing solicitors can provide assistance to individuals and companies operating in the licensing trade who require an Alcohol licence, want to change or transfer a licence, are holding a one off event or are facing regulatory intervention

If you are launching a new premises or event, we understand the time it takes to get the required licence can be crucial to your opening and your cashflow. We will work hard to ensure your application is done correctly the first time round to avoid costly delays and appeals.

Areas we can assist with:

• Applying for a Premises License
• Applying for a Personal License
• Transferring a Premises License
• Applications for a Designated Premises Supervisor
• Varying existing Licenses
• Temporary event notice
• Licensing
• Reviews
• Licensing appeals/revocations

Taxi Licensing

Issues surrounding taxi licensing can be frustrating and complicated. If you have been refused a license, the appeal process can sometimes result in decisions that seem both unreasonable and disproportionate. Often, Local Authorities fail to properly apply their own local policy, or may appear to have an illogical view of what it means to be a “fit and proper” person.

Whether you have a Hackney Carriage licence, a Private Hire driver licence, Operator or Fleet Operator licence, we can advise and represent Taxi Drivers and Taxi Owners, whose licences have been affected.

We advise on all aspect of Taxi Licensing applying for a Taxi Licence to the Local Authority, right through to appealing it at Court, if a Licence is refused or revoked.

We can also represent and support you when you are going to be interviewed under caution by the Licensing officer, or when you are to appear before the Local Authority Licensing Committee to consider whether to grant or revoke a licence. We also represent clients at appeals hearings.

Appeals against Local Authority decisions are made to the local Magistrates Court, and involve a complete re-hearing of the case. The Local Authority will instruct a lawyer to try and persuade the Magistrates to uphold their decision and they will often prepare written arguments to support their case. We can help you prepare your written arguments to persuade the Magistrates that they should reverse the Local Authority’s decision.

Transport/Road Traffic Law

The road transport industry is one of the most regulated industries in Europe. There are extensive regulations and acts covering the requirements in addition to the transportation and time pressures of delivering goods and services.

We advise clients in relation to heavy goods vehicle (HGV) and public service vehicle (PSV) licences.

We also provide legal representation for businesses, drivers and transport managers in various aspects of the regulatory framework for transport law.

Areas we can assist with: –

Applications for Operators Licences or variations to existing licenses

Representing you in DVSA enforcement action

Representing you at driver conduct hearings.

Representing you at public inquiries before the Office of the Transport Commissioner.

Representing you in allegations of tachograph related offences.

Powers of Attorney

A lasting power of attorney (LPA) is a legal document that lets you (the ‘donor’) appoint one or more people (known as ‘attorneys’) to help you make decisions or to make decisions on your behalf.

Lasting Powers of Attorney come in two different forms. One covers your property and financial affairs and the other covers health and welfare issues. You will not necessarily require both but any Lasting Power of Attorney made will need to be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian BEFORE it can be used.

This gives you more control over what happens to you if you have an accident or an illness or cannot make your own decisions because you ‘lack mental capacity’. You must be 18 or over and have mental capacity (the ability to make your own decisions) to make your LPA.

The powers under an LPA may be modified and restricted to suit your requirements.

The Office of the Public Guardian currently charge an £82.00 fee to register an LPA, however if you are on certain benefits an exemption can be claimed. We can advise you regarding this.

Court of Protection Orders

If you become unable to manage your affairs and are not capable of instructing a Solicitor in respect of a Lasting Power of Attorney because you lack capacity, then the alternative is a Court of Protection Order.

In such cases the Court will make a decision as to who should manage your affairs (the Deputy) and what powers they have, or do not have. The person appointed as your deputy can be a relative or friend, known as a lay deputy, or someone acting in a professional capacity such as a solicitor.

Solicitors fees for dealing with Court of Protection work are fixed by the Court.

Everyone’s individual circumstances are different and we will provide you with a personal service to suit your specific needs. We can help and advise you on issues such as obtaining medical evidence on mental capacity, preparing the application forms, the timescales and stages in the application, the process once the deputy has been appointed, the roles and responsibilities of a deputy as outlined in the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and likely fees and charges