Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Contempt of Court Act 2019

General provisions and consequential amendments

27: Maximum penalty and appeal rights for finding of contempt under inherent jurisdiction

You could also call this:

"What happens if you disobey the court and the Contempt of Court Act doesn't apply"

Illustration for Contempt of Court Act 2019

If you are found to be in contempt of court in a situation where this Act does not apply, the High Court can give you a maximum penalty of 6 months in prison. The High Court has the power to punish you for contempt of court in these situations. You can find out more about what happens if you are found in contempt of court by looking at the rules in Subpart 5 of Part 6 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS152031.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Courts and legal help
Previous

26: How this Act relates to other authority or power to punish for contempt of court, or

"This law explains how courts in New Zealand punish people who disrespect them, and how it works with other court powers."

Next

28: References in other Acts to contempt of court, or

"What other laws mean when they talk about contempt of court"

Part 3General provisions and consequential amendments

27Maximum penalty and appeal rights for finding of contempt under inherent jurisdiction

  1. The maximum penalty that may be imposed by the High Court in the exercise of its inherent jurisdiction to punish any person for contempt of court in any circumstances to which this Act does not apply is 6 months’ imprisonment.

  2. Subpart 5 of Part 6 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011 applies to the finding of contempt and the penalty imposed by the High Court in those circumstances.