I would do all the development on some special development versions not using license files at all. If assembly signing is involved, you could also use
delayed signing (
https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/t07a3dye%28v=vs.110%29.aspx).
In the Subversion code database, you should store only the source files. Many developers poorly understand which files in their projects are source files and which are not — this is a nasty problem which should be solved from the very beginning and not allowed to happen. In some cases, some file which is external to development and is not technically a source file, can be added. Such files are also should be stored somehow, because there are no any other, "more original" source for them. As they are not part of the development process, and supposedly (almost) never change and are not subject of creating development versions, I would suggest to store them, including license files, separately. With Subversion, I would suggest using the mechanism of external files:
http://tortoisesvn.net/docs/nightly/TortoiseSVN_en/tsvn-dug-externals.html[
^].
The Microsoft article referenced first, about delaying of signing, touches a very delicate aspect which may be related to your work: the technology where the development team is not fully trusted, so part of the programming asserts is kept in secret from all or some team members; the article describes one of the technologies limiting developers' access in this way. You have to decide on that by yourself, but my own opinion is: trust the developers in this respect, as not trusting them can create
moral hazard. Revision control and other technical tools should only protect against accidental mistakes and, say, incompetent steps, not from stealing property; developers should be loyal to their organization based on moral principles and some incentives, not by keeping people in technical handcuffs.
—SA