Licensing Act 1964 (repealed)

41 Qualifications for registration. E+W

(1) A club shall only be qualified to receive a registration certificate (whether in the first instance or by way of renewal), if under the rules of the club—

(a) persons may not be admitted to membership or be admitted as candidates for membership to any of the privileges of membership, without an interval of at least two days between their nomination or application for membership and their admission; and

(b) persons becoming members without prior nomination or application may not be admitted to the privileges of membership without an interval of at least two days between their becoming members and their admission.

(2) A club shall be qualified to receive a registration certificate for any premises (whether in the first instance or by way of renewal), only if—

(a) it is established and conducted in good faith as a club and has not less than twenty-five members; and

(b) intoxicating liquor is not supplied, or intended to be supplied, to members on the premises otherwise than by or on behalf of the club; and

(c) the purchase for the club, and the supply by the club of intoxicating liquor (so far as not managed by the club in general meeting or otherwise by the general body of members) is managed by an elective committee, as defined in Schedule 7 to this Act; and

(d) no arrangements are or are intended to be made—

(i) for any person to receive at the expense of the club any commission, percentage or similar payment on or with reference to purchases of intoxicating liquor by the club; or

(ii) for any person directly or indirectly to derive any pecuniary benefit from the supply of intoxicating liquor by or on behalf of the club to members or guests, apart from any benefit accruing to the club as a whole and apart also from any benefit which a person derives indirectly by reason of the supply giving rise or contributing to a general gain from the carrying on of the club.

(3) Subject to subsection (4) of this section, in determining whether a club is established and conducted in good faith as a club a magistrates’ court may have regard—

(a) to any arrangement restricting the club’s freedom of purchase of intoxicating liquor; and

(b) to any provision in the rules, or arrangement, under which money or property of the club, or any gain arising from the carrying on of the club, is or may be applied otherwise than for the benefit of the club as a whole or for charitable, benevolent or political purposes; and

(c) to the arrangements for giving members proper information as to the finances of the club, and to the books of account and other records kept to ensure the accuracy of that information; and

(d) to the nature of the premises occupied by the club.

(4) Subject to section 49(2) of this Act, where the rules of a club applying for the issue or renewal of a registration certificate conform with Schedule 7 to this Act, the court shall assume, as regards any matters not raised by an objection duly made in accordance with this Part of this Act, that the club satisfies the conditions of paragraphs (a) to (c) of subsection (2) of this section and, in the case of a renewal, also the conditions of paragraph (d) of that subsection, except that the court may, if it sees fit, inquire whether there is any such arrangement or provision in the rules as is referred to in paragraph (a) or (b) of subsection (3) of this section, and, if so, whether it is such that the club ought not to be treated as established and conducted in good faith as a club.