Code of Organization and Civil Procedure (Cap. 12)

Code of Organization and Civil Procedure (Cap. 12), article 994

Official PDF on legislation.mt

994. (1) It is forbidden to use in any written pleading or during the hearing of a cause any insulting or offensive expression or any expression which is otherwis e objectionable, unless such expression is necessary for the purposes for which the written pleading is by law intended or for the cause in which it is use d, or to produce without the previous permission of the court, any document which contains any such expression. CODE OF ORGANIZATION AND CIVIL PROCEDURE [CAP. 12. 275 Cap. 9. (2) Any person who acts in contravention of the foregoing provisions of this article or who presents or produces or attem pts to present or to produce any writte n pleading or document which contains an expression forbidden by this article, and any perso n who has signed any such written pleading, shall be guilty of contempt of court and shall be sentenced by the court to reprim and or to a fine ( ammenda or multa ) or to detention in terms of the Criminal Code . (3) Where notwithstanding the provisions of article 184 a written pleading has been filed or a document has been produced which contains expressions forbidden by this article, the court shall, on its own motion or on the demand of the aggrieved part y, order the whole of the written pleading or of the document to b e expunged from the registry of the court or from the records of the proceedings, and the written pleading or document shall for all purposes be deemed never to have been filed or produced. (4) Where it can be shown to the court that the contravention is slight and was not wilful and can be remedied adequately by the striking out of the forbidden expression, the court may in lieu of applying the foregoing provisions of this article order that th e said expressions be struck out. Punishment for insults to court officers.

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Text read from the consolidated PDF published by Legislation Malta. Tables, figures and marginal notes may be incomplete or out of place: the official PDF is authoritative. General information, not legal, tax or accounting advice.