Only accredited members of the press will be able to tweet from court, under new proposals from Lord Judge CJ.
The consultation, published this week, follows interim guidance issued in December that judges could accept applications from any individual as long as there was no danger of interference with the administration of justice.
Under the new proposals, instant text-based messages via Twitter, e-mail or mobile phone by accredited members of the media will be allowed during court hearings. The presumption behind this is that “the media will be familiar with the requirements of fair and accurate reporting, that they will abide by the relevant Press Complaints Commission codes of practice, and that they will understand and abide by any reporting restrictions that may be imposed”.
The judge in each case will have discretion as to what is allowed and could extend the privilege to non-accredited members of the media if deemed appropriate.
In the Supreme Court, however, a different code applies. Its president, Lord Phillips, has said legal teams and members of the public as well as journalists can tweet from the highest court in the land because there is “seldom” any need for confidentiality once a case has reached that stage.
