# The Criminal Procedure (Amendment) (No. 2) Rules 2026, Rule 18: Amendment of Part 48


In Part 48 (contempt of court)—
(a) in rule 48.5 (initial procedure on obstruction, disruption, etc.)—
(i) paragraph (1)(b)—
(aa) omit the “or” after paragraph (i);
(bb) insert “, or” after paragraph (ii);
(cc) after paragraph (ii) insert—
“(iii) section 41A of the Sentencing Act 2020 (order to attend sentencing hearing);”;
(ii) in the note to the rule, after the second paragraph insert—
“Under section 41A of the Sentencing Act 2020, the Crown Court may order a defendant to attend a sentencing hearing where—
(a) the defendant has been convicted of an offence;
(b) the defendant is to be detained in custody while awaiting sentencing by the Crown Court; and
(c) the defendant has refused, or there are reasonable grounds to suspect that the defendant will refuse, to attend court for the sentencing hearing.
A defendant who fails without reasonable excuse to comply with such an order commits a contempt of court.
Under section 41B of the Sentencing Act 2020, where the defendant is aged 18 or over (subject to some exceptions for those aged 18, 19 or 20) and commits a contempt of court (i) by failing to comply with an order to attend court for a sentencing hearing, or (ii) by interrupting the sentencing hearing or otherwise misbehaving and being removed because of their conduct, in dealing with that contempt the court may make a prison sanctions order instead of or in addition to exercising any other power.”;
(b) in rule 48.9 (Initial procedure on failure to comply with court order, etc.), in paragraph (1)(a)(i) for “or rule 47.58 (order for access under section 18A of the Criminal Appeal Act 1995)” substitute “, rule 47.58 (order for access to documents, etc. under section 18A of the Criminal Appeal Act 1995), rule 47.68 (order for access to electronic data under the Crime (Overseas Production Orders) Act 2019) or rule 47.74 (suspension and non-disclosure orders under Schedule 18 to the Crime and Policing Act 2026)”.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2026/721/rule/18 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/criminal-procedure-amendment-no-2-rules-2026/rule-18
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.