Contempt of court has been aptly described as the Proteus of the
legal world, assuming an almost infinite diversity of forms. Its
central concern is to protect the administration of justice in
criminal and civil cases, but also to protect witnesses from being
victimized and courts from being subjected to destructive criticism
in the press, or disruptive conduct during their proceedings.
Professor Miller's classic work Contempt of Court gives a
comprehensive treatment of the issues in this broad subject area
including contempt in the face of the court, publication contempt,
and civil contempt when orders are breached. This new and updated
edition has been written against the backdrop of transformations to
the media and mass communication technology. Social media has
changed day-to-day life almost beyond recognition, and its
potential to prejudice criminal proceedings in particular has
quickly become apparent. The High Court and the Court of Appeal are
considering with increasing frequency what steps might be
appropriate to safeguard criminal trials in this context, these can
include injunctions, orders made under the Contempt of Court Act
1981, and severe sanctions when members of the public find
themselves in contempt. This edition incorporates the most recent
case law in this area. Through pragmatic and reliable analysis,
this book provides the reader with an authoritative understanding
of all aspects of this vital topic.
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Fri, 2 Nov 2018 | Review
by: Phillip T.
TAMING ‘THE PROTEUS OF THE LEGAL WORLD’
‘MILLER ON CONTEMPT OF COURT’ IS OUT
NOW IN A NEW FOURTH EDITION
An appreciation by Elizabeth Robson Taylor of Richmond Green Chambers and Phillip Taylor MBE, Head of Chambers
and Reviews Editor, “The Barrister”
‘A daunting, if not confusing area of the law,’ is the trenchant comment on contempt of court offered by David Perry QC, who so ably edits the new edition of this widely cited and highly regarded legal text, published recently by Oxford University Press.
In the seventeen years since the third edition by Professor C. John Miller, ‘there have been significant developments,’ says Perry, ‘both substantively and procedurally’ in this challenging area of law referred at least twice in this text as the ‘Proteus of the legal world’ -- in the words of John Moskovitz -- ‘assuming an almost infinite variety of forms.’
The ‘forms’ in which contempt of court manifests itself are as varied and infinite as circumstances and human ingenuity will allow, compounded by the almost infinite capacity for human disobedience, specifically of court orders.
By its very nature, contempt of court can -- and does -- generate any number of juicy stories gleefully gobbled up by voracious media, hence the observation by Miller in his preface to the third edition, that ‘it is now unusual for a week to pass without some aspect of contempt appearing in the law reports and indeed in the daily news.’
Eighteen years later little has changed, with one huge exception: that such narratives can now go viral, accessible to billions worldwide. ‘Every practitioner has a story to tell,’ says David Perry ‘of all kinds of instances of contempt of court,’ from cavalier or disruptive behaviour, to actual breaches of court orders. He further points out that the Civil Procedure Rules and Criminal Procedure Rules have brought welcome clarity to what has been ‘a procedural maze containing many pitfalls for the unwary’.
With its logical structure and accessible plain-speaking style, this book provides a wealth of advice and guidance on this vexed subject from a team of over a dozen expert practitioners on the ways and means by which such pitfalls may be avoided or adroitly dealt with.
Beginning with the introductory chapter which places contempt of court in its historical context, the book goes on to deal, for example, with the distinction between criminal and civil contempt, as well as civil proceedings and proceedings in tribunals. Of particular interest is the chapter on the victimization of jurors, witnesses and other persons after the conclusion of court proceedings. The final chapter on civil contempt of court covers disobedience of court orders which relate to a payment of money and others which do not.
There is much more besides. It is fair to say that the book deals with every imaginable issue relating to contempt of court supported by reference to specific cases. To cite just one example out of hundreds, note the 1989 case of a young woman sentenced to seven days’ imprisonment for refusing to give evidence against a former boyfriend charged with assaulting her. The decision was quashed by the Court of Appeal, satisfied that she had been subjected to serious threats and that the judge had conduced the trial unfairly. The point is made, however, that ‘duress can be available as a “defence” to contempt only in exceptional circumstances’.
If ever there was a legal text essential to a practitioner’s library, it’s this one. Extensively footnoted, it contains almost sixty pages of cases, two appendices and a twenty-page index. It is fortunate for busy practitioners grappling with contempt of court issues that this new edition from the Oxford University Press is out now.
The publication date is cited as at 21st December 2017.
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