Section 108 Matrimonial Causes Act 1970

Section 108 of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1970 is about Restriction on publication of evidence. It provides as follows:

(1) Except as provided by this section, a person shall not in relation to any proceedings under this Act print or publish, or cause to be printed or published, any account of evidence in the proceedings, or any other account or particulars of the proceedings, other than-
(a) the names, addresses and occupations of the parties and witnesses, and the name or names of the member or members of the court and of the legal advisers of the parties;

(b) a concise statement of the nature and grounds of the proceedings and of the charges, defences and counter-charges in support of which evidence has been given;

(c) submissions on any points of law arising in the course of the proceedings, and the decision of the court on those points; or

(d) the judgment of the court and observations made by the court in giving judgment.

(2) The court may, if it thinks fit in any particular proceedings, order that none of the matters referred to in subsection (1) (a) to (d) of this section shall be printed or published, or that any matter or part of a matter so referred to shall not be printed or published.

(3) Any person who contravenes subsection (1) of this section, or prints or publishes, or causes to be printed or published, any matter, or part of a matter, in contravention of an order of a court under subsection (2) of this section shall be guilty of an offence punishable on conviction-
(a) in the case of a first offence (or a second or subsequent offence if prosecuted summarily) by a fine not exceeding one thousand naira or imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months; and

(b) in the case of a second or subsequent offence, being an offence prosecuted otherwise than in a summary manner, by a fine not exceeding two thousand naira or imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year.

(4) Proceedings for an offence against this section shall not be commenced except by, or with the written consent of the Attorney-General of the Federation.
(5) The preceding provisions of this section shall not apply to or in relation to-
(a) the printing of any pleading, transcript of evidence or other document for use in connection with proceedings in any court or the communication of any such document to persons concerned in the proceedings;

(b) the printing or publishing of a notice or report in pursuance of the direction of a court;

(c) the printing or publishing of any publication bona fide intended primarily for the use of members of the legal or medical profession, being- (i) a separate volume or part of a series of law reports; or (ii) any other publication of a technical character; or

(d) the printing or publishing of a photograph of any person, not being a photograph forming part of the evidence in proceedings under this Act.

(6) In this section, “court” includes an officer of a court investigating a matter in accordance with rules of court and “judgment of the court” includes a report made to a court by such an officer.

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