{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/female-genital-mutilation-act-2003/schedule-1/paragraph-1",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/female-genital-mutilation-act-2003/schedule-1/paragraph-1.json",
  "legislation": "ukpga/2003/31",
  "legislation_title": "Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/female-genital-mutilation-act-2003",
  "path": "schedule/1/paragraph/1",
  "kind": "paragraph",
  "number": "1",
  "heading": null,
  "text": "(1) This paragraph applies where an allegation has been made that a female genital mutilation offence has been committed against a person.\n(2) No matter likely to lead members of the public to identify the person, as the person against whom the offence is alleged to have been committed, may be included in any publication during the person's lifetime.\n(3) For the purposes of this Schedule, any consent of the person to an act giving rise to the alleged offence is not to be taken as preventing that person from being regarded as a person against whom the alleged offence was committed.\n(4) In any criminal proceedings before a court, the court may direct that the restriction imposed by sub-paragraph (2) is not to apply (whether at all in England and Wales and Northern Ireland, or to the extent specified in the direction) if the court is satisfied that either of the following conditions is met.\n(5) The first condition is that the conduct of a person's defence at a trial of a female genital mutilation offence would be substantially prejudiced if the direction was not given.\n(6) The second condition is that—\n(a) the effect of sub-paragraph (2) is to impose a substantial and unreasonable restriction on the reporting of the proceedings, and\n(b) it is in the public interest to remove or relax the restriction.\n(7) A direction under sub-paragraph (4) does not affect the operation of sub-paragraph (2) at any time before the direction is given.\n(8) In this paragraph “ the court ” means—\n(a) in England and Wales, a magistrates' court or the Crown Court;\n(b) in Northern Ireland, a magistrates' court, a county court or the Crown Court.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F1",
      "text": "Sch. 1 inserted (3.5.2015) by Serious Crime Act 2015 (c. 9), ss. 71(2), 88(4) (with s. 86(15))"
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/31/schedule/1/paragraph/1",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T09:18:02.022803+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}