Lancashire Constabulary, R (on the application of) v Reedley Magistrates Court

Costs are discretionary. A licensing tribunal must consider all relevant circumstances when deciding whether a police authority performing a statutory licensing function should pay the successful applicant’s costs. The applicant’s success alone is insufficient. An adverse order will generally require a good reason, such as bad faith, lack of foundation, malice or an improper motive.

Where the tribunal’s short reasons arguably fail to address those principles, the High Court may decline immediately to quash the order if the material is insufficient to establish Wednesbury unreasonableness. It may instead direct the tribunal to state a case so that the issue can be fully considered.

The Chief Constable challenged an order by Reedley Magistrates Court requiring him to pay £2,015.56 in costs incurred by Mr Cairns in a licensing application. The application for a justices’ on-licence had succeeded after the police objected on the grounds that Mr Cairns was not a fit and proper person and was a front man for previous licensees.

The Chief Constable first sought to appeal to the Crown Court, but no such appeal lay. The magistrates later refused to state a case, treating the application as frivolous and vexatious and considering judicial review on the Wednesbury principle to be the appropriate remedy. The central issues were whether the time for seeking a case stated ran from the assessment of costs and whether the costs order was unlawful or Wednesbury unreasonable.

1. The application to quash the costs order was refused, but the magistrates were directed to state a case to the High Court. Costs were reserved, and the case was to be stated within 21 days unless an extension was obtained.

2. Under section 111(2) of the Magistrates' Court Act 1980, time for applying for a case stated began when the final costs order was made. The primary decision to award costs and the later assessment formed two stages. The application was therefore in time.

3. Costs decisions are discretionary and must take account of all relevant circumstances. The principles in R v Totnes Licensing Justices ex parte Chief Constable of Devon and Cornwall [1990] 156 JP 587 and Chief Constable of Derbyshire v Mr Goodman and Mr Newton were applicable. A police authority acting in good faith in discharging its licensing function should not ordinarily be ordered to pay costs merely because the other party succeeded. An order may nevertheless be justified where the objection was without foundation, malicious, improperly motivated or otherwise improperly brought.

4. The magistrates’ reasons arguably showed that they had not properly applied those principles. However, having regard to the brevity of the reasons and the circumstances in which they were given, the material did not justify a finding at once that the decision was Wednesbury unreasonable. A fuller statement of the case was required so that the issue could be properly debated.

The judgment records that the Chief Constable attempted to appeal the costs order to the Crown Court, but was informed that no such appeal lay. The magistrates subsequently refused to state a case, following which judicial review proceeded with permission.