Contempt of court

In a Media Advisory Notice published on 16th January, the Attorney General issued a reminder about the risks of being in contempt of court prior to the trial of Axel Rudakubana commencing on 20th January. He is due to stand trial on Monday after being accused of the murder of three young girls and the attempted murder of 10 other people.

What is contempt of court?

Contempt of court refers to a wide variety of conduct that impedes or interferes with the administration of justice. To be held to be in contempt of court, it must be established that someone risks unfairly influencing a court case. This may stop someone from getting a fair trial and can affect a trial’s outcome. Contempt of court could be, but is not limited to, disobeying or ignoring a court order, taking photos in court, or refusing to answer the court’s questions if called as a witness.

There has traditionally been a distinction between civil and criminal contempt. Criminal content is concerned with conduct which goes beyond mere non-compliance with a court order or undertaking and involves a serious interference with the administration of justice. Criminal contempt includes contempt by publication; this Media Advisory Notice is concerned with contempt by publication, specifically those who speak publicly or post on social media, thereby unfairly influencing the court case.

What you can do

The Media Advisory notice expressly highlights that “fair and accurate reporting of legal proceedings held in public in good faith is permitted”.

What you can’t do

Conversely, the Media Advisory Notice explicitly highlights that one may be in risk of being in contempt of court if they post or publish “anything that asserts or assumes, expressly or implicitly, the guilt of Axel Rudakubana”. Therefore, any post online or published material that does as such, may be in contempt of court. With this in mind, you may be at risk if you post any opinions or comments that could influence the jury’s deliberations in the trial of Axel Rudakubana.

What happens if you are found to be in contempt of court?

The Contempt of Court Act 1981 provides the statutory basis for strict liability contempt, which holds that a person may be in contempt of court, regardless of intent, for conduct in relation to a publication which tends to interfere with the course of justice, where proceedings are active at the “time of publication”. Publication can be understood as the whole period that the material is available for, and not just the first moment it is published. Therefore, even if a person does not mean to, published material or a post that interferes with the trial of Axel Rudakubana whilst it is ongoing could fall under the purview of contempt of court.

A sentence of imprisonment is very rare in respect of media contempt and there has been no such sentence for over 60 years. The penalty is normally a fine, with the level set dependent on means, and on the severity of the contempt. Therefore, one could be held to be in contempt of court if they express an opinion either as published material or comments online that fulfils the above. It is advisable to not opine about Axel Rudakubana’s (or anyone else on trial for an offence, for that matter) guilt or innocence online or elsewhere, as per the Advisory notice.

Olliers Solicitors – specialist criminal defence lawyers

If you are to appear in either the Magistrates’ Court or Crown Court, you should seek legal representation as soon as possible. Important decisions are made as soon as a case is in court and you need to ensure that your case is prepared from the outset. At Olliers we have a specialised team of lawyers who represent people in court on a daily basis. If you require advice and representation in connection with Magistrates’ Court or Crown Court proceedings, please contact us.