Contempt of Court Defences

Question 1

Section 3 of the 1981 Act

Answer 1

Publisher has defence if at the time of publication having taken all reasonable care
he/she did not know
AND had no reason to suspect that proceedings were active
*Burden of proof is on the publisher
*Reporters should keep notes of calls to police
*Journalists should take all reasonable care by asking pertinent questions to double check if case is active and should keep a note of time of reply and what was said

Question 2

Section 4 of the 1981 Act

Answer 2

Person not guilty of contempt in respect of a fair and accurate report of legal proceedings
held in public
published contemporaneously and in good faith

Question 3

Section 4 defence regarding online archives

Answer 3

Section 4 defence of contemporaneous reporting means cannot re-publish old reports and should look to remove old reports that could create risk of substantial risk of prejudice/impediment on a current case

Question 4

Section 5 of the 1981 Act

Answer 4

A publication as part of a discussion in good faith
of public affairs
or of matters of general public interest
is not contempt
provided the risk of impediment or prejudice to particular proceedings is merely incidental to the discussion

Question 5

Assisting the police

Answer 5

Attorney General: “The Press has nothing to fear from publishing in reasoned terms anything which may assist apprehension of a wanted man”.
No case law where newspaper has been held in contempt for publishing a police appeal