All of the offences under the Licensing Act 2003 (LA 2003) are summary-only offences and therefore triable only in the magistrates' court, which normally have to be prosecuted within six months of the offence being committed. However, s 186(3) states that the time limit for laying an information is extended from six months to twelve months from the date of the offence. Proceedings are likely to be instigated by way of postal requisition.

Licensing authorities, the police or the local Weights and Measures authority can prosecute people for any of the offences contained in LA 2003. If prosecuted the court may also order the forfeiture of a personal licence or suspend it for up to six months and also order forfeiture of any goods concerned (eg alcohol). If convicted of a relevant offence as defined by LA 2003, s 113(1), the police may raise objections to the defendant applying for a personal licence, and the Licensing Authority must hold a hearing to consider whether they should be granted a personal