Contempt of Courts: An Analysis

Contempt of court is a matter concerning the fair administration of justice, and aims to punish any act hurting the dignity and authority of judicial tribunals. Lord Diplock defines it in a following way: Although criminal contempt of court may take a variety of forms they all share a common characteristic: they involve an interference with the due administration of justice, either in a particular case or more generally as a continuing process. It is justice itself that is flouted by contempt of court, not the individual court or judge who is attempting to administer it. Contempt of court because of its peculiar and contentious nature had led to contradictory opinions among scholars, jurists, and various masses, hence no satisfactory definition of contempt of court can be had. The term contempt of court is a generic term descriptive of conduct in relation to particular proceedings in a court of law that tends to undermine that system or inhibit citizens from availing themselves of it for the settlement of their disputes. The law concerning contempt of court has advanced over the centuries as a medium whereby the courts may act to forbid or punish conduct that tends to obstruct, humiliate or prejudice the administration of justice either with reference to a particular case or as in general.