In most states a driver who is arrested for DUI/DWI will have their license confiscated by the arresting officer and it will be automatically suspended when the department of motor vehicles (DMV) receives notice of the arrest. An administrative hearing (at a DMV office rather than in court) generally must be requested within days of the arrest and the driver must appear at the hearing in order to challenge the suspension or revocation of the license.

The purpose of such a DMV administrative hearing is to determine whether the state should suspend the driver’s license (driving privileges) of the driver charged with DUI/DWI. This hearing is also known as an “administrative per se” or “admin per se” hearing or an “administrative license revocation” or ALR hearing. A defendant has the right to be represented by an attorney at such a DMV hearing—but unlike the criminal prosecution portion of a DUI/DWI charge, a defendant does not have a Constitutional right to counsel in an administrative DMV hearing and must hire an attorney (or be self-represented or pro se), as the state will not appoint an attorney to represent the defendant.

Laws regarding DMV hearings for driver’s license suspensions or revocations in DUI/DWI cases vary from state to state—including procedures and deadlines—and are generally located in a state’s statutes—often in the vehicle code, penal or criminal code, or administrative code.

In Maine, when a driver is arrested for operating under the influence (OUI), which is the state's equivalent of DUI/DWI, their driver's license can be immediately suspended. The Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) is the agency responsible for handling these suspensions, not the DMV as in some other states. The driver has the right to request an administrative hearing to challenge the suspension, and this request must typically be made within 10 days of the arrest. The administrative hearing is separate from the criminal proceedings and focuses solely on the suspension of driving privileges. At this hearing, the state will determine whether the suspension is justified based on the evidence presented. While a defendant can be represented by an attorney at this hearing, they do not have the constitutional right to a state-appointed attorney as they would in criminal court. Therefore, if they wish to have legal representation, they must hire an attorney or choose to represent themselves.