ABSTRACT
Contempt is any act likely or calculated to obstruct the due administration of justice, i.e. anything likely to prejudice a fair trial. Blonde housewife, Elsie Jones, was wearing a green trouser suit when she appeared at Peckham Green Magistrates Court. Even if reporting restrictions have been lifted, there are dangers of a report being contemptuous. The Contempt of Court Act 1981 says that any contemptuous broadcast falls within the ‘strict liability’ rule. ‘Strict’ as used here means the courts will presume intent rather than the prosecution having to prove it. Proceedings are active in civil courts when the case is ‘set down’ in the High Court, i.e. when a case goes onto the waiting list to be heard or a date is set. There are occasions when someone has been found guilty by the jury but there is a delay before the judge passes sentence.
