Fighting The Revocation Of Your Liquor License: How To Proceed
There are lots of rules and regulations that people forget to follow when it comes to applying for and receiving a liquor license. When you apply for liquor licensing for a bar or liquor store, you are supposed to provide or give permission for a criminal background check. Sometimes this step is missed or skipped because of errors in the office, glitches in the system, etc. So, some people that probably should not have had liquor licenses end up receiving one. When you have received a liquor license and you suddenly find that your license is being revoked, you can fight back. Here is how.
Produce Copies of the Paperwork You Submitted When You Applied
Seek out legal counsel, and then provide your lawyer with copies of the paperwork you submitted when you first applied for your license. You should have kept this paperwork in a safe place, regardless of whether it was six months or six years ago. When your lawyer has the proof in front of him/her that you gave all of the required documents, he/she can begin building your case.
Your City/State Was Supposed to Do the Criminal Background Check
There are some cities and states that are supposed to do the criminal background checks, with your signed consent. If you gave your signed consent and were granted a liquor license, the natural assumption is that the city/state in which you operate your business did the criminal background check and found it to be acceptable under the law. Hence, they should not revoke the license they granted months or years after your business has been in operation. That is the stance that your lawyer will take on your case.
Fighting Lawyer With Lawyer
In some states, as is the case in Texas, a liquor license is only granted if a lawyer determines that the applicant's criminal history does not forbid the applicant from holding such a license. If the lawyer who originally gave the city the thumbs-up on your license is later charged with criminal activity and all of his/her licensing cases come under scrutiny, your license may be revoked. It then becomes a legal "game" of lawyer against lawyer, yours against theirs, to keep or reinstate your license, even if you have no criminal history that would disbar you from having a license in the first place. Sometimes, you just have to fight lawyer with lawyer.
To learn more about liquor licensing, contact a company like Arizona Liquor Industry Consultants.