With a national presence, Irwin Mitchell operates a full-service practice with particular emphasis on the leisure, retail and hospitality licensing industries. Philip Somarakis, head of the firm’s regulatory and criminal investigations group, oversees the team, offering advice to a varied client base ranging from prestigious institutions such as Oxford Union to local retailers in the UK. The group recruited a team of seven regulatory lawyers from Ince & Co in 2023 and continues to assist with investigations by authorities over breaches of the Licensing Act 2003. At associate level, Andrew Cotton can be noted for both gambling and alcohol licensing advice.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- ‘The firm deals with contentious licensing cases ranging from premises licence applications and reviews to niche driving licence issues.’
‘Philip Somarakis is a superb and tenacious licensing lawyer, often achieving extraordinary results through persistence and litigation.'
'Very personalised service and committed to achieving positive outcomes. Going beyond what is expected.'
Key clients
- Oxford Union
- Prez Ed Limited
- Midcounties Co-operative Limited
- Wicked Fish Ltd
- Tyrrells Wood Golf Club
- Too Damn Cheeky Sound & Vision Limited
- Esra Sahin
- Independent Spanish Restaurants (Brighton) Ltd
- Roielle Morris
- Krishnamurti Foundation Trust
- Kaaizan’s
- Oxford Union
Work highlights
Assisted BAFTA with general licensing advice for BAFTA.
Assisted Wicked Fish Ltd with dealing with an appeal against a decision by the local authority to revoke the client’s premises licence due to an incident at the premises.
Assisted Roielle Morris with successfully obtaining the grant of a premises licence which attracted representations and successfully representing the client before a licensing sub-committee and making a second application for a new site.
Practice head
Philip Somarakis
Other key lawyers
Andrew Cotton