Richard Dawson conducted a case north of the border – Successfully representing both the Operator and external Transport Manager in relation to their Standard National O Licence.

Richard Dawson conducted a case north of the border. The usual restrictions on rights of audience for Counsel in England and Wales, who are not allowed to practice in the Scottish Courts being waived in a tribunal setting, Richard successfully represented both the Operator and external Transport Manager in relation to their Standard National O Licence.

This was a bad case, regrettably, where little meaningful and no effective management of the O Licence had been carried out by anyone throughout the years the O Licence had been in existence. Notwithstanding, albeit belatedly, the Operator had implemented new systems, real changes which demonstrably would ensure future compliance with the regulatory licensing regime.

Ultimately, after careful consideration of the evidence before him, the DTC decided to allow the O Licence to continue, following a short period of suspension to mark the longstanding failures to comply.  The TM was permitted to retire gracefully, with his good repute tarnished but not lost, on the undertaking that he would not act as a TM again.

The case served as a reminder of the need to take effective action as soon as things go wrong – and certainly as soon as called to a Public Inquiry.

The case also demonstrated the necessity for all Operators of commercial vehicles to seek external assistance when appropriate – an independent audit of systems would have alerted the Operator and TM to their shortcomings and failings in good time to remedy and rectify before the DVSA came knocking…

Thanks to Lisa Fleming, Managing Director of Logico, expert transport compliance consultants, for her careful handling and detailed preparation at short notice of these combined cases.

Richard Dawson is an accomplished trial lawyer, specialising in transport law, defending companies and individuals facing regulatory investigation and prosecution.