The Supreme Court has today given the ‘green light’ to allow people to ‘tweet’ from inside the courtroom.

It has issued guidance on the use of live text-based communication by legal teams, journalists and members of the public of what is going on in court.

The Supreme Court said it had allowed the practice because the cases before it do not involve interaction with witnesses or jurors, so there is no reason why what is said in court should not be put in the public domain immediately.

There are some exceptions where it will not be permitted, including cases where there are formal reporting restrictions, family cases involving the welfare of a child, and cases where publication of proceedings might prejudice a pending jury trial.

The guidance is limited to the Supreme Court. Different considerations apply to other courts.

President of the Supreme Court Lord Phillips said the rapid development of communications technology brings both opportunities and challenges for the justice system.

He said: ‘An undoubted benefit is that regular updates can be shared with many people outside the court, in real time, which can enhance public interest in the progress of a case and keep those who are interested better informed.

‘We are fortunate that, by the time a case reaches the Supreme Court there is very seldom any reason for any degree of confidentiality, so that questions about what should and should not be shared with those outside the courtroom do not usually arise.

‘This means that we can offer a green light to tweeting and other forms of communication, as long as this does not disrupt the smooth running of the court,’ said Phillips.

The Supreme Court policy on the use of live text-based communications can be found on its website.