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 North Carolina, when a driver is arrested for Driving Under the Influence (DUI) or Driving While Impaired (DWI), their driver's license may be immediately revoked for a period of 30 days if they either fail a chemical test or refuse to submit to one. This is known as a civil revocation. The driver can request a hearing to challenge this revocation, which is separate from the criminal proceedings for the DUI/DWI charge. This administrative hearing is conducted by the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and must be requested within 10 days of the license revocation if the revocation is based on a refusal to take the chemical test. For revocations based on failing the chemical test, the hearing request is not necessary for the initial 30-day revocation period, but may be relevant for longer revocation periods resulting from the case. At the DMV hearing, the driver has the right to be represented by an attorney, but unlike in criminal court, the state will not provide one. The driver must either hire an attorney or represent themselves. The purpose of the DMV hearing is to determine whether the driver's license should remain suspended or revoked based on the evidence related to the DUI/DWI arrest.