What is the licensing register
A licensing register is kept by the court office containing details of all licences associated with the sale of alcohol within the court area. Details of all renewals, transfers and other information relating to licences can be found on the register.
A clubs register is also kept containing the names of clubs (sports or social) in the court area. The dates of granting and renewal of the certificate of registration and the address of the club can be found on the register.
How do I search the register
If you are a legal practitioner and have a registered account on CSOL, you can perform a full search, for example to check the history of the licence and owners, through your account for €35.
If you are a lay litigant and do not have CSOL access, you can go to your local court office. The office staff will carry out a full search on your behalf. You will have to pay a fee of €35.
Why a register search may be necessary
Any person can check the licensing register. There are a number of reasons why you may need to perform a search on the licensing register, for example:
- If you are injured in a licensed premises and wish to take a civil action, you will need to find out who the correct licence holder is.
- You may need to search the history of a licence if you were looking to buy a premises or the licence attached.
- If you wish to object to the renewal of a publicans licence, you will need the correct name of the licence holder (individual or business).
- If you have been refused entry to a licensed premises on discriminatory grounds. See more on our dedicated page.
If you are seeking to view the original maps of a premises which is often a requirement for most Circuit Court applications, you must send a detailed request to the office. For example, if you wish to extend an existing licensed area you will need copies of the original maps.
The eRegister on CSOL has details of the licence history back as far as 2009. However, if you need access to information from before 2009, the office staff will need to look at the original files which may be in storage.
If significant time has passed, the search might take longer as the original file may be archived.
