There are many videos of US judges imposing punishments on people who commit obvious contempt of court in their own courts in front of them. They can order the person taken to jail on the spot.
Do British judges have the same power for people who are openly contempuous in front of them?
Can a British judge convict and sentence someone for contempt in their own court on the spot?
Yes.
This practice, called "direct criminal contempt", which is a legacy of the days when lords personally presided over resolving disputes between their subjects in their own courtyards in the feudal era before professional judges were delegated with the authority to fill that role, originates in the courts of England and Wales and remains in place there (the statute itself does not comprehensively spell out the process for direct contempt in all U.K. courts):
In England and Wales (a common law jurisdiction), the law on contempt is partly set out in case law (common law), and partly codified by the Contempt of Court Act 1981. Contempt may be classified as criminal or civil. The maximum penalty for criminal contempt under the 1981 Act is committal to prison for two years.
Disorderly, contemptuous or insolent behaviour toward the judge or magistrates while holding the court, tending to interrupt the due course of a trial or other judicial proceeding, may be prosecuted as "direct" contempt. The term "direct" means that the court itself cites the person in contempt by describing the behaviour observed on the record. Direct contempt is distinctly different from indirect contempt, wherein another individual may file papers alleging contempt against a person who has willfully violated a lawful court order.
There are limits to the powers of contempt created by rulings of European Court of Human Rights. Reporting on contempt of court, the Law Commission commented that "punishment of an advocate for what he or she says in court, whether a criticism of the judge or a prosecutor, amounts to an interference with his or her rights under article 10 of the ECHR" and that such limits must be "prescribed by law" and be "necessary in a democratic society", citing Nikula v Finland.
Criminal contempt
The Crown Court is a superior court according to the Senior Courts Act 1981, and Crown Courts have the power to punish contempt. The Divisional Court as part of the High Court has ruled that this power can apply in these three circumstances:
Contempt "in the face of the court" (not to be taken literally; the judge does not need to see it, provided it took place within the court precincts or relates to a case currently before that court);
Disobedience of a court order; and
Breaches of undertakings to the court.
Where it is necessary to act quickly, a judge may act to impose committal (to prison) for contempt.
Where it is not necessary to be so urgent, or where indirect contempt has taken place the Attorney General can intervene and the Crown Prosecution Service will institute criminal proceedings on his behalf before a Divisional Court of the King's Bench Division of the High Court of Justice of England and Wales. In January 2012, for example, a juror who had researched information on the internet was jailed for contempt of court. Theodora Dallas, initially searching for the meaning of the term "grievous bodily harm", added search criteria which localised her search and brought to light another charge against the defendant. Because she then shared this information with the other jurors, the judge stated that she had compromised the defendant's right to a fair trial and the prosecution was abandoned.
Magistrates' courts also have powers under the 1981 Act to order to detain any person who "insults the court" or otherwise disrupts its proceedings until the end of the sitting. Upon contempt being admitted or proved the (invariably) District Judge (sitting as a magistrate) may order committal to prison for a maximum of one month, impose a fine of up to £2,500, or both.
It will be contempt to bring an audio recording device or picture-taking device of any sort into an English court without the consent of the court.
It will not be contempt according to section 10 of the Act for a journalist to refuse to disclose his sources, unless the court has considered the evidence available and determined that the information is "necessary in the interests of justice or national security or for the prevention of disorder or crime".
Historically, this power was not shared by judges in courts in civil law countries, although Belgium is an exception, and has provided this authority on a statutory basis to its judges.
