VPRS 670 Register of Licence Applications, Sale

Liquor licensing has had a complex history which is yet to be fully researched. The sale of liquor has been subject to regulation since the beginnings of settlement in Victoria. Up to 1886 registers of applications for liquor and non-liquor licences were created and maintained in local Courts of Petty Sessions at which annual, quarterly and general sittings of justices of the peace, licensing benches or licensing magistrates occurred. Since the proclamation of the Licensing Act 1885 (40 Vic.,No.857), jurisdiction over liquor licensing has been vested in distinct judicial and administrative bodies. The records in this series will be of one of the following types depending on the licensing authority which created them.Licensing Courts Registers 1886-1954Under the Licensing Act 1885 (40 Vic., No.857) Victoria was divided into Licensing Districts, each one comprising a division of an electoral district. The Act provided for Licensing Courts to be constituted for each Licensing District to hear and determine liquor licence applications only. For its annual sittings each Licensing Court was to be constituted by three licensing magistrates, who could be police magistrates except in the (Melbourne) Metropolitan, Ballarat and Sandhurst (Bendigo) groups of Licensing Districts where one of the licensing magistrates was to be a county court judge. Outside of the annual sittings, applications could be heard and determined by any one member of the Licensing Court. Non-liquor licences continued to be heard by the court of petty sessions.The registers created between 1886 and 1890 often document the transition of responsibility from the courts of petty sessions to the licensing courts. In most country areas the same volume continued to be used for liquor and non-liquor licence applications until circa 1890 when new stationery was introduced specifically for liquor licence applications. Between 1886 and 1890, the pages which recorded proceedings of the Licensing Court were annotated to show that they were a record of that authority.Until 1916, separate Licensing Courts were constituted throughout Victoria to hear applications for a number of licensing districts. Under the Licensing Act 1916 (No.2855) the same three licensing magistrates held Licensing Court hearings on a circuit basis. The Licensing Amendment Act 1922 (No.3259) subsequently reduced the number of licensing districts from two hundred and seventeen (one for each division of an electoral district) to sixty-five (one for each electoral district). The registers always record the place of the sitting and the licensing districts to which the hearings related.Victorian Licensing Court Registers 1954-1968The Victorian Licensing Court succeeded the Licensing Courts under the Licensing Amendment Act 1953 (No.5767).The Court was constituted by two magistrates under the chairmanship of a judge of the County Court. Under the 1953 Act the division of the State into licensing districts effectively ceased although the Court continued to conduct hearings in licensing areas throughout the State.Liquor Control Commission Registers 1968-1988/Liquor Licensing Commission 1988-1989The Liquor Control Commission was established under the Liquor Control Act 1968 (No.7695) on 1 July 1968 as successor to the Victorian Licensing Court. The Liquor Control Commission was constituted by four members, the chairman being a County Court Judge. From 1975 the chairman could be any "judicial member". The Commission continued the practice of holding sittings at country and metropolitan locations.

酒类牌照监管拥有尚未得到充分研究的复杂历史。自维多利亚州（Victoria）殖民定居伊始，酒类售卖便受到监管约束。直至1886年，酒类与非酒类牌照申请的登记册均由当地治安法院（Court of Petty Sessions）负责创建与维护，该法院会定期召开年度、季度及常规庭审，由太平绅士（Justices of the Peace）、牌照合议庭或牌照裁判官主持审理。
自1885年《牌照法》（Licensing Act 1885，编号40 Vic.,No.857）颁布施行起，酒类牌照监管的司法管辖权被划归至独立的司法与行政机构。本档案系列的记录将根据其创建所属的牌照监管机构，分为以下类型：
牌照法院登记册（1886-1954年）
根据1885年《牌照法》（40 Vic.,No.857），维多利亚州被划分为多个牌照专区，每个专区对应一个选区的分区。该法规定每个牌照专区设立牌照法院（Licensing Court），仅负责审理酒类牌照申请案件。牌照法院的年度庭审由三名牌照裁判官组成，其中可包含治安裁判官；但墨尔本都会区、巴拉腊特及桑德赫斯特（本迪戈，Bendigo）片区的牌照专区除外，此类专区的牌照法院年度庭审需有一名县法院法官担任牌照裁判官之一。非年度庭审期间，牌照法院的任意一名裁判官即可审理并裁定牌照申请。非酒类牌照申请仍由治安法院审理。
1886年至1890年间创建的登记册，往往记录了监管职责从治安法院向牌照法院转移的过程。直至约1890年引入专为酒类牌照申请设计的专用文书前，多数乡村地区仍沿用同一卷宗同时登记酒类与非酒类牌照申请。1886年至1890年间，所有记录牌照法院庭审流程的页面均会标注，以明确其为该监管机构的档案。
直至1916年，维多利亚州各地均设有独立的牌照法院，负责对应牌照专区的申请审理。根据1916年《牌照法》（No.2855），三名牌照裁判官以巡回庭审的方式开展牌照法院的审理工作。1922年《牌照修订法》（No.3259）随后将牌照专区的数量从217个（对应每个选区分区）缩减至65个（对应每个完整选区）。此类登记册始终会记录庭审地点及对应审理的牌照专区。
维多利亚州牌照法院登记册（1954-1968年）
根据1953年《牌照修订法》（No.5767），维多利亚州牌照法院取代了原有的各地牌照法院。该法院由两名裁判官组成，以县法院法官担任庭长。尽管1953年法案实际上取消了全州的牌照专区划分，但该法院仍会在全州各地的牌照辖区开展庭审。
酒类监管委员会登记册（1968-1988年）/酒类牌照委员会登记册（1988-1989年）
1968年7月1日，根据1968年《酒类监管法》（No.7695），酒类监管委员会（Liquor Control Commission）正式成立，作为维多利亚州牌照法院的继任机构。该委员会由四名成员组成，主席为县法院法官。1975年起，主席可由任意‘司法成员’担任。该委员会延续了在乡村及都会区开展庭审的工作模式。