The licence case
Licence suspension after a DUI arrest in Minnesota
The licence proceeding has its own deadlines. Check the applicable notice or order, not just the criminal court date.
Hearing-request deadline in Minnesota: For court review of a Minnesota test-failure or test-refusal license revocation under §169A.52, the petition must be filed within 60 days following receipt of the notice and order. Written administrative review by the commissioner is a separate route available during the revocation period.
Minn. Stat. § 169A.53 (opens in a new tab)The notice identifies your proceeding. Conditions below.
The window
- Deadline to request a hearing
- For court review of a Minnesota test-failure or test-refusal license revocation under §169A.52, the petition must be filed within 60 days following receipt of the notice and order. Written administrative review by the commissioner is a separate route available during the revocation period.
- The court-petition clock runs from receipt of the notice and order, not the arrest date. Administrative review does not replace the separate court-petition deadline.
- The commissioner’s 15-day period is for reporting the administrative-review result after receiving a request, not the driver’s filing deadline. The separate 60-day period after filing concerns the judicial hearing.
- Filing the court petition does not itself stay the revocation. If the hearing has not occurred within 60 days after filing, the reviewing court may order a stay of the remaining revocation on terms it considers proper.
- Hearing procedure under the cited rule
- Minnesota provides written administrative review by the commissioner and separate judicial review. A court-review petition is filed with the district court administrator in the county where the alleged offense occurred, with proof of service on the commissioner and the standard civil filing fee.
- For a §169A.52 revocation, the court petition is due within 60 days following receipt of the notice and order. It must identify the petitioner and commissioner and state specific grounds for rescission, along with the identifying information required by §169A.53, subdivision 2.
- Administrative review may be requested in writing during the revocation period. It is not a contested-case hearing and does not replace judicial review.
- The judicial hearing is civil and separate from the criminal prosecution, although it may be held with criminal pretrial motions. Filing does not automatically stay the revocation; the conditional court-ordered stay in subdivision 2(c) is distinct.
- Suspension under the cited rule
- Not published yet. We show a figure only once it has been confirmed against the official source and dated.
- Suspension length after a refusal
- Not published yet. We show a figure only once it has been confirmed against the official source and dated.
What happens if the window closes
The effect of a missed hearing-request deadline depends on the proceeding and the applicable law. This page does not determine whether review is still available or whether a particular licence restriction applies. A defence lawyer can review the notice or order and explain the available procedures.
Whether Minnesota offers a restricted licence in that situation, and on what conditions, is a state-specific question:
- Hardship or restricted licence
- Not published yet. We show a figure only once it has been confirmed against the official source and dated.
- Ignition interlock, first offense
- Not published yet. We show a figure only once it has been confirmed against the official source and dated.
How the two cases relate
A licence restriction may arise from a test result, a refusal or a criminal conviction. Those are not interchangeable grounds. The source and conditions attached to each rule matter; this page does not predict how one proceeding will affect another in a particular case.
The two legal questions
The criminal charge and driving privileges can involve different proceedings. The notice, order and cited rule identify the applicable process.
Driving privileges
The licence case
- Forum
- The agency or court identified by the applicable licence proceeding
- Clock
- Check the applicable notice or order for the deadline and its starting event
- Deadline to request a hearing
- For court review of a Minnesota test-failure or test-refusal license revocation under §169A.52, the petition must be filed within 60 days following receipt of the notice and order. Written administrative review by the commissioner is a separate route available during the revocation period.
- The court-petition clock runs from receipt of the notice and order, not the arrest date. Administrative review does not replace the separate court-petition deadline.
- The commissioner’s 15-day period is for reporting the administrative-review result after receiving a request, not the driver’s filing deadline. The separate 60-day period after filing concerns the judicial hearing.
- Filing the court petition does not itself stay the revocation. If the hearing has not occurred within 60 days after filing, the reviewing court may order a stay of the remaining revocation on terms it considers proper.
- Suspension under the cited rule
- Not published yet. We show a figure only once it has been confirmed against the official source and dated.
Criminal charge
The criminal case
- Forum
- A criminal court
- Clock
- Check court notices and orders; no case duration is predicted here
- Alcohol-concentration threshold
- 0.08% or more at the time of driving, or as measured within two hours.
- Impairment-based offenses can apply independently of this alcohol-concentration threshold.
- First-offense penalty rule
- Not published yet. We show a figure only once it has been confirmed against the official source and dated.The cited rule may describe a range or a minimum with conditions, not a predicted sentence.