REPUBLIC V. JAMES BLANTYNE EXPARTE NII ODAMATEY

DECISION 

APPLICATION FOR COMMITTAL FOR CONTEMPT 

i. Introduction:  

[1] Contempt of Court is the mechanism which the law provides for the protection of the  authority of the court from improper interference. Contempt arises in many ways but includes a  breach of a court order, an attempt to obstruct the administration of justice, a deliberate attack upon the integrity of a court or a judge that interferes with proceedings, or some other form of conduct  not foreseeable. 

[2] The power of the High Court to punish for contempt is provided in Articles 19(12) and 126  of the 1992 Republican Constitution of Ghana, and re-enacted in S 36 of the Courts Act, 1993 (Act  459) as amended; S10 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) and Order 50 of the High Court  (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2004 (CI 47). Order 50 of CI 47 sets the parameters by which an  Applicant may move the court for an order for an attachment for contempt of court. 

[3] It is pertinent to observe that there is no codified leg…