Contempt

It was an established principle that the question whether to decline to hear a contemnor, a course which would almost invariably lead to his appeal or application being dismissed, was to be determined by reference to how, in the circumstances of the individual case, the interests of justice would best be served. When deciding that question, one factor the court had to bear in mind was that it was a strong thing for a court to refuse to hear a party and was only to be justified by grave considerations of public policy. It was a step which a court would take only when the contempt itself had impeded the course of justice. Particular care was to be taken before declining to hear a contemnor who was appealing against the order of which he was in breach, and the same degree of care was required where the contemnor was appealing against the judge’s findings of fact which had constituted a breach of the relevant order.

When considering whether it was in the interests