Attorney General’s Social Media warning

The Attorney General, Dominic Grieve, has announced advisory notes will be published to help prevent social media users from committing a contempt of court. This advice will be made available via the gov.uk website and the Twitter feed of the Attorney General’s Office, @AGO_UK.

The Independent online (4.12.2013) reported: “The move represents a concerted effort by the Government to make the online world – described by Lord Justice Leveson last year as “a megaphone for gossip” that was governed by “mob rule” – aware of the rules that govern traditional media. In particular senior lawyers fear that the explosion in social media use threatens the chances of defendants in prominent cases receiving a fair trial.”

Mr Grieve said: “I hope that by making this information available to the public at large, we can help stop people from inadvertently breaking the law and make sure cases are tried on the evidence, not what people have found online.”