HM Solicitor General -v- Rana Kabbani Seale
Committal for contempt of courtCrown CourtJudgmentOrderSentencing Remarks
Case number: CH-2021-000222/240/246
In the Royal Courts of Justice
17 July 2025
Before:
Mr Justice Rajah
Between:
HM Solicitor General
-v-
Rana Kabbani Seale
Pursuant to CPR 81.8(8) and paragraph 13 of Practice Direction (Committal for Contempt: Open Court) [2015] 1 WLR 2195
On 2 July Mr Justice Rajah found Mrs Rana Kabbani Seale to be in contempt of court for having breached a court order 27 times and imposed a sanction of 6 months imprisonment suspended for 2 years. In the event of a further breach of the order within 2 years she will be returned to court and the custodial element of the sanction may be activated.
Rana Seale is the widow of Patrick Seale who died on 11 April 2014. She and their children and stepchildren are involved in long running probate proceedings in relation to Patrick Seale’s estate. Mrs Seale has behaved vexatiously in that litigation, making numerous applications which have been dismissed as totally without merit, and bombarding the court with vexatious correspondence and submissions.
On 25 November 2021 Mrs Justice Bacon made an extended civil restraint order (“ECRO”) in relation to Mrs Seale for a period of two years which has since been extended to three years, and then for a further three years. While the ECRO is operative, Mrs Seale can only make applications in the proceedings with the permission of the court.
By order dated 10 December 2021 Mrs Seale was ordered to make any application for permission under the ECRO to Mrs Justice Bacon or Mrs Justice Falk and not to correspond with court staff as to the substance of the ECRO or any other order.
Mrs Seale did not comply with that order leading to Mrs Justice Bacon making an order endorsed with a Penal Notice on 30 March 2023 (“the Order”) prohibiting Mrs Seale from communicating with the Court except by formal application or correspondence on routine administrative matters.
On 12 June 2024 the Solicitor General for England and Wales issued an application to commit Mrs Seale for contempt of court for breaching the Order. There were 28 alleged breaches. Each breach related to an email, or a letter sent to the Court by Mrs Seale between 24 April 2023 and 25 April 2024 which it was alleged breached the Order. The emails or letters made allegations of criminality, conspiracy, corruption, bias and prejudice on the part of various judges because Mrs Seale did not agree with their decisions or reasoning. These allegations were wholly unsubstantiated and without foundation.
Mr Justice Rajah found that 27 of the 28 alleged breaches were proven beyond reasonable doubt.
Transcripts of the judgment and sentencing remarks have been ordered to be produced on an expedited basis and will then be available from the judicial press office and the National Archives.
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