Peters & Peters

Anna Bradshaw is interviewed by BBC Radio 5 on contempt of court laws and how they relate to social media

The pervasiveness of social media has complicated the application of contempt of court rules. P&P expert Anna Bradshaw says, “the pitfalls are many. The biggest issue is that so few people appear to be aware of them. It is something that you would expect journalists to be familiar with but perhaps not all other users of media and particularly social media.” She warns that an offence of contempt of court by publication can be committed by anything that you say, write, broadcast or communicate to any section of the public, if it creates a substantial risk of serious prejudice or impediment to the course of justice or legal proceedings. Listen here.