Comportment in Court and Contempt of Court

In those early days that marked the beginning of the court system there were very few Lawyers and litigants because the society was predominantly a traditional setting with their ethos and mores deeply rooted and applied in the settlement of all manner of disputes. Migration from the traditional ideas to the colonial principles of dispute settlement, seen as alien, and represented by the courts, posed the problem of acceptability and assimilation. This led to occasional use of abusive words both on the side of the Litigants and Judges, knowingly or unknowingly. The paper traces the position of things during the era of ordinances and in proceedings at the lower or inferior courts where most of the abuses occur. It explored comportment in court, and the meaning and classification of contempt. The paper concludes that punishment for contempt must adhere to appropriate procedure, respect jurisdiction and the contemnor right to be heard.