Contempt of Court: A Salutary Reminder From the English Courts

This article first appeared in the September 2013 issue of Arbitration News, the Newsletter of the Arbitration Committee of the Legal Practice Division of the International Bar Association (Vol 18, No 2), and is reproduced by kind permission of the International Bar Association, London, UK. © International Bar Association.

Recent case law serves to remind us, if a reminder were needed, that the threat of imprisonment for contempt of court if a party fails to comply with an English court order or injunction is very real. Where the party is a company, the consequences can affect not only the company itself and its assets, but also the individuals behind the company, including its directors.