The Commissioner of Police can object to your application to become a secondhand dealers and pawnbrokers licence holder on the grounds that you are "not a fit and proper person". He can object to your application even if you are not automatically disqualified.
More on disqualification.
When you receive a Police objection you can:
- request a hearing before the Licensing Authority of Secondhand Dealers and Pawnbrokers
- make a written submission
- decide not to respond.
Request a hearing
Your application for a hearing must:
- be in writing
- reach the Licensing Authority within three weeks of the date the objection was sent by Police.
You will be given at least 14 days notice of your hearing date. You may appear before the Licensing Authority:
- in person
- through legal counsel
- both in person and through legal counsel.
The Licensing Authority will decide whether to accept or reject the Police objection. You will be told the decision at the end of the hearing or in writing shortly after the hearing.
Make a written submission
You do not have to request a hearing if you receive a Police objection against your application. You can make written submissions to the Licensing Authority. If you choose to make a written submission it must reach the Licensing Authority within three weeks of the date on which Police sent the objection.
Licensing Authority response
The Licensing Authority will make a written decision on whether to accept or reject the Police objection to your application. If the Police objection is rejected the Licensing Authority will continue to consider your application.
If the Licensing Authority upholds a Police objection to an individual application, you will be ineligible to hold a certificate and therefore cannot be granted a licence.
For companies applying for a licence, if the Licensing Authority upholds a Police objection against any person concerned in the management of the company, that person becomes ineligible to hold a certificate. The Licensing Authority cannot issue a licence to a company unless every person concerned in the management of the company is eligible to hold a certificate.
Appeals
As an applicant for a licence you may appeal to the District Court regarding any of the Licensing Authority's decisions regarding that application. You must appeal to the District Court within 20 days of the Licensing Authority's decision.