Types of Contempt — KSLU Ethics Notes

Types of Contempt

flowchart TD
    A[Contempt of Court - Sec 2a] --> B[Civil Contempt - Sec 2b]
    A --> C[Criminal Contempt - Sec 2c]
    B --> B1[Wilful disobedience of court order]
    B --> B2[Wilful breach of undertaking given to court]
    C --> C1[Scandalising the court]
    C --> C2[Prejudicing pending cases sub judice rule]
    C --> C3[Interfering with administration of justice]

Civil vs Criminal Contempt — Compared

Feature	Civil Contempt	Criminal Contempt
Definition (Sec)	Sec 2(b)	Sec 2(c)
Nature	Private wrong — affects a party	Public wrong — affects the institution
Who initiates	Aggrieved party	Court suo motu or AG
Purpose	Compel compliance	Punish and deter
Example	Disobeying a stay order	Calling a judge corrupt in public