A person refusing to testify or otherwise comply with the order to disclose the source of the information as specified in such order, after such order becomes final, may be adjudged in contempt of court and punished accordingly.
8-909.Contempt.
Article VIII. Evidence · Part 9. Reporter's Privilege · Not amended since adoption on record · Last verified July 20, 2026
In one sentenceA person who refuses to comply with a final order to disclose a reporter's source can be held in contempt of court and punished accordingly.
Full Text of 735 ILCS 5/8-909
Plain-English Summary
Section 8-909 supplies the enforcement mechanism for Part 9's disclosure procedure. Once a divestiture order requiring disclosure of a source becomes final, a person who refuses to testify or otherwise comply with that order may be adjudged in contempt of court and punished accordingly.
The section ties the contempt exposure to finality. Section 8-908 keeps the privilege intact during an appeal, so contempt exposure under Section 8-909 attaches only once the order compelling disclosure is no longer subject to that automatic protection, that is, once it has become final.
This is the backstop that gives the rest of Part 9 teeth: after the application, hearing, findings, and any appeal have run their course, a reporter or other person who still declines to identify a source faces the same contempt consequences as anyone who defies a final court order.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if a reporter refuses to disclose a source after losing the appeal?
Once the order to disclose becomes final, Section 8-909 allows the person to be adjudged in contempt of court and punished accordingly for refusing to testify or otherwise comply.
When does contempt exposure attach under Section 8-909?
It attaches after the order specifying disclosure of the source becomes final, which follows the point at which Section 8-908's protection during a pending appeal no longer applies.
What must happen before a person can be held in contempt under Section 8-909?
The order to disclose the source must have become final, and the person must refuse to testify or otherwise comply with what that order specifies.
Does Section 8-909 create a new form of contempt?
No. It applies the ordinary contempt of court remedy to noncompliance with a final disclosure order entered under Part 9's reporter's privilege procedure.
How does Section 8-909 fit with the rest of the reporter's privilege procedure?
It is the enforcement provision that follows the application process in Sections 8-903 and 8-904, the court's findings in Sections 8-906 and 8-907, and the appeal protection in Section 8-908.
Amendment History
(Source: P.A. 82-280.)
Source & verification. Section text and amendment history are
reproduced verbatim from the Illinois Compiled Statutes, published by the
Illinois Compiled Statutes, Illinois General Assembly / Legislative Reference Bureau. Last verified July 20, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: reporter's privilege contempt illinoisrefuse to disclose source contempt illinois8-909 illinois evidenceshield law enforcement illinois