Contempt and committal

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This subtopic considers the different types of contempt that can be committed, the court's approach to dealing with applications to commit for contempt (sometimes referred to as ‘committal proceedings’) and the procedure for making a contempt application pursuant to CPR 81, as in force from 1 October 2020. Reference is also made to content on dealing with vexatious litigation via the use of civil restraint orders (CROs).

Contempts—the different types of contempt

The main categories of contempt that are recognised and catered for (in terms of procedure in CPR 81) are:

  1. •

    non-compliance with a court order or a solicitor’s undertaking—breaching a court order is the most common cause for contempt proceedings being initiated. For further information, see Practice Note: Civil contempt proceedings—non-compliance with a court order or undertaking. In addition, there is a wealth of case law available giving examples of when, how and for what purpose contempt proceedings for breach of a court order are brought—see Practice Note: Civil contempt proceedings—illustrative decisions

  2. •

    false statements—contempt proceedings can be brought against someone for making a false statement, eg in a witness statement verified by a

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