Contempt and committal in family proceedings

The different types of contempt in family proceedings

There are a number of different forms of contempt of court and Family Procedure Rules (FPR 2010), SI 2010/2955, Pt 37 and the supporting practice direction FPR 2010, PD 37A provides a common procedure for all of them. The different forms of contempt in family proceedings include:

•
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, see Practice Note: Family contempt proceedings—non-compliance with a court order or undertaking
•
making a false statement—proceedings for contempt may be brought against a person who makes, or causes to be made, a false statement in a document verified by a statement of truth

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