Contempt and committal in family proceedings

The Practice Notes in this subtopic consider the different types of contempt of court in family proceedings and the procedural requirements for applications to commit for contempt (sometimes referred to as committal proceedings) contained in the Family Procedure Rules 2010 (FPR 2010), SI 2010/2955, Pt 37 and the supporting practice direction FPR 2010, PD 37A.

The different types of contempt in family proceedings

There are a number of different forms of contempt of court and FPR 2010, SI 2010/2955, Pt 37 provides a common procedure for all of them. The different forms of contempt in family proceedings include:

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non-compliance with a court order or undertaking—a wide range of orders made in family proceedings may be enforced by committal; an injunctive order that directs a person to do an act at or within a specified time, or to abstain from doing an act, or an undertaking to similar effect which incorporates a penal warning notice, may be enforced by an order for the committal of that person to prison for contempt, on the application of the person entitled to the benefit of the direction or undertaking,

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Cafcass guidance on conflicting assessments in public law cases

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