The Criminal Justice (Serious Fraud)(Northern Ireland) Order 1988

Reporting restrictions

Restrictions on reporting applications for dismissal and preparatory hearings

10.—(1) Except as provided by this Article, it shall not be lawful to publish in Northern Ireland a written report, or to broadcast or include in a cable programme in Northern Ireland a report of proceedings to which this section applies which contains any matter other than that permitted by this Article.

(2) This Article applies—

(a) to an application under Article 5(1); and

(b) to a preparatory hearing and any appeal or application for leave to appeal relating to such a hearing.

(3) An order that paragraph (1) shall not apply to reports—

(a) of an application under Article 5(1);

(b) of a preparatory hearing;

(c) of an appeal to the Court of Appeal under Article 8(11); or

(d) of an application for leave to appeal under that paragraph,

may be made—

(i) in a case falling within sub-paragraph (a), (b) or (d), by the judge dealing with the matter; and

(ii) in a case falling within sub-paragraph (c), by the Court of Appeal.

(4) Where in the case of two or more accused one of them objects to the making of an order under paragraph (3), the court shall make the order if, and only if, it is satisfied, after hearing the representations of the accused, that it is in the interests of justice to do so.

(5) An order under paragraph (3) shall not apply to reports of proceedings under paragraph (4), but any decisions of the court to make or not to make such an order may be contained in reports published, broadcast or included in a cable programme before the time authorised by paragraph (6).

(6) It shall not be unlawful under this Article to publish, broadcast or include in a cable programme a report of an application under Article 5(1) containing any matter other than that permitted by paragraph (9) where the application is successful.

(7) Where—

(a) two or more persons were jointly charged; and

(b) applications under Article 5(1) are made by more than one of them,

paragraph (6) shall have effect as if for the words “the application is” there were substituted the words “all the applications are”.

(8) It shall not be unlawful under this Article to publish, broadcast or include in a cable programme a report of an unsuccessful application or a preparatory hearing at the conclusion of the trial of the person charged, or of the last of the persons charged to be tried.

(9) The following matters may be contained in a report published, broadcast or included in a cable programme without an order under paragraph (3) before the time authorised by paragraphs (6) and (7), that is to say—

(a) the identity of the court and the name of the judge;

(b) the names, ages, home addresses and occupations of the accused and witnesses;

(c) any relevant business information;

(d) the offence or offences, or a summary of them with which the accused is or are charged;

(e) the names of counsel and solicitors in the proceedings;

(f) where the proceedings are adjourned, the date and place to which they are adjourned;

(g) any arrangements as to bail;

(h) whether legal aid was granted to the accused or any of the accused.

(10) The following is relevant business information for the purposes of paragraph (9)—

(a) any address used by the accused for carrying on a business on his own account;

(b) the name of any business which he was carrying on on his own account at any relevant time;

(c) the name of any firm in which he was a partner at any relevant time or by which he was engaged at any such time;

(d) the address of any such firm;

(e) the name of any company of which he was a director at any relevant time or by which he was otherwise engaged at any such time;

(f) the address of the registered or principal office of any such company; and

(g) any working address of the accused in his capacity as a person engaged by any such company.

(11) In paragraph (10) “engaged” means engaged under a contract of service or a contract for services.

(12) The addresses that may be published or broadcast or included in a cable programme under paragraph (9) are addresses—

(a) at any relevant time; and

(b) at the time of their publication, broadcast or inclusion in a cable programme.

(13) If a report is published, broadcast or included in a cable programme in contravention of this Article, the following persons, that is to say—

(a) in the case of a publication of a written report as part of a newspaper or periodical, any proprietor, editor or publisher of the newspaper or periodical;

(b) in the case of a publication of a written report otherwise than as part of a newspaper or periodical, the person who publishes it;

(c) in the case of a broadcast of a report, any body corporate which transmits or provides the programme in which the report is broadcast and any person having functions in relation to the programme corresponding to those of the editor of a newspaper or periodical;

(d) in the case of an inclusion of a report in a cable programme, any body corporate which sends or provides the programme and any person having functions in relation to the programme corresponding to those of an editor of a newspaper,

shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.

(14) Proceedings for an offence under this Article shall not be instituted otherwise than by or with the consent of the Attorney General.

(15) Paragraph (1) shall be in addition to, and not in derogation from, the provisions of any other enactment with respect to the publication of reports of court proceedings.

(16) In this Article—

“broadcast” means broadcast by wireless telegraphy sounds or visual images intended for general reception;

“cable programme” means a programme included in a cable programme service;

“publish”, in relation to a report, means publish the report, either by itself or as part of a newspaper or periodical, for distribution to the public;

“relevant time” means a time when events giving rise to the charges to which the proceedings relate occurred.