The law relating to Coroners is very old and in many respects out of date. It is due to be reformed at some point in the future, but the notes below explain the current position.

The Coroner is usually a lawyer (but sometimes doctor) and is an independent judicial officer, appointed by the Home Office.

The Coroner's Officer assists the Coroner and is often a retired or part time police officer.

The Coroner's Officer will be your point of contact with the Coroner. You will normally find the Coroner's Officer to be very helpful, informative and supportive. If you want to check progress with arrangements for the inquest for a member of your family, the Coroner's Officer will be able to update you.

The Coroner's Court

Some areas have dedicated Coroner's courts; in other areas, the Coroner will convene the inquest in a suitable building - for example, civic rooms or the town hall.

The Coroner's court is a court of enquiry and not a criminal or civil court.

Notification of Death

Not all deaths are reported to the Coroner. When someone has died "a violent or unnatural death" or "a sudden death of which the cause is unknown" the death should be reported to the Coroner and the Coroner will be required to hold an inquest.

In most cases where a relative has died, the cause of death can properly be given by a GP or a treating hospital doctor.

Once the Coroner has been informed of a death which may give rise to an inquest, different procedures will be put into place depending on where the death occurred. There are particular procedures for deaths in prison, deaths in police custody, deaths at work, deaths due to fire or carbon monoxide poisoning or deaths where medical care may be implicated.

Coroner's role

The Coroner must investigate deaths reported to him as possibly requiring an inquest, and decide whether an inquest should be held. A death may be reported by

• A police officer
• A doctor called to a sudden death
• A doctor called to an unexpected death
• The governor of a prison or a detention centre

If you are concerned about a death which has not been reported by any of the officials above, you should contact your local Coroner's Officer and explain your concerns.

The Local Registrar of Deaths

The Registrar of births, deaths and marriages may not complete the registration of a death that has been reported to the Coroner and until the Coroner's enquiries are complete. If these enquiries suggest the death was natural, the Registrar will be able to complete the process of registration.

Our private client department can help with enquiries about death certificates/ wills etc.

Post Mortem

You may be asked by the hospital staff who treated your relative for your permission to carry out a post mortem examination. This can be very important in determining the cause of death or providing other information for research purposes. If you are uncertain whether to agree you are perfectly entitled to ask what the purpose of the post mortem would be and you are entitled to refuse if you wish.

A Coroner may ask a pathologist to conduct a post mortem. The Coroner does not need the family's permission to have this examination performed.

The Coroner may ask a pathologist at the local hospital to carry out the examination, or may ask a pathologist from the Home Office if he feels an independent report is more appropriate. There is no reason why you should not contact the Coroner's Office if you have any views about this.

If you do have concerns, you may ask the Coroner if you can have your own independent post mortem performed in addition to the Coroner's post mortem. You should contact a solicitor to help you arrange this.

If you are notified as a next of kin that there is to be a Coroner's post mortem and you consider that medical treatment may have played a part in the death, you should ask the Coroner to appoint an independent pathologist rather than have the examination undertaken by the pathologist at the hospital where the deceased was treated.

The Coroner's Enquiry

The Coroner's task is to find the answers to the following questions:

• Who is the deceased?
• When did the deceased die?
• Where did the deceased die?
• How did the deceased come by his or her death
• By what means did the deceased come by their death?
• In what circumstances did the deceased die?

The current Coronial law prevents the Coroner from widening the enquiry beyond these questions but the rules can be interpreted so as to allow a wider enquiry. It is now established that the Coroner must investigate by what means and in what circumstances a person came by their death, which allows a jury or the Coroner to comment on the facts surrounding the death as well as the direct cause of death itself.

Inquests can provide valuable information that may help with a compensation claim but that is not their purpose. The verdict must not attribute civil or criminal liability to a person or organisation.

Witnesses

The Coroner may invite witnesses to attend to give evidence and may issue witness summonses obliging them to do so. The Coroner is not required to disclose the witness statements to any of the parties who may have an interest in attending the inquest but may choose to do so. The Coroner should disclose a copy of the post mortem report to the next of kin upon request. However, out of consideration for the feelings of the family, the Coroner will not usually disclose the full post mortem report as the details may be found distressing.

Jury

The Coroner will not normally sit with a jury but may decide to do so in an inquest which raises issues of wide public importance, with a local or national significance. In certain circumstances the Coroner is obliged to sit with a jury, for example if the death occurred in prison, or in police custody, or resulted from an accident or process at work.

The Inquest

An inquest is open to the public and the local press will normally have a reporter in attendance at the Coroner's court. It is up to the local press what they report of the proceedings. The Coroner would normally try to keep personal information or documents private (such as a suicide note) but this may not be possible.

Timing of the Inquest

The Coroner needs to complete all enquiries and obtain relevant statements and then must consider whether independent expert evidence is required. If so, the inquest will need to wait for those reports to be produced. In cases where a number of witnesses are required to attend it may take many weeks before a suitable date can be found, or indeed many months. This is particularly the case where there are several medical witnesses. Another factor will be the Coroner's case load. The Coroner's Officer should keep you informed of how arrangements are proceeding.

The Verdict

The possible verdicts are;

• Natural causes: Where death was caused by an illness or disease occurring naturally.
• Industrial disease: Where the deceased was exposed to a harmful substance or activity while carrying out his employment, for example death due to mesothelioma from exposure to asbestos at work.
• Want of attention at birth: Only used where the alternative verdicts of 'unlawful killing' or 'neglect' are not applicable. This verdict can be reached both for the death of an infant or a mother.
• Stillbirth: Where an infant was born after the 24^th week of pregnancy and did not breathe or show any signs of life.
• Death by dependant/non-dependant abuse of drugs: Where there was abuse of (usually) non-prescribed drugs.
• Suicide: Killed himself/herself while the balance of his/her mind was disturbed: Where there was a voluntary act, consciously carried out, for the purpose of destroying one's life. There must be clear evidence of this because of the possible financial, social and religious implications of suicide.
• Accidental death: Where the circumstances that caused death were truly accidental and neither the action nor the death of the person was intended.
• Misadventure: Where the death was an unintended consequence of deliberate actions, such as medical treatment.
• Neglect: Where there was a gross failure to provide adequate care to someone dependent upon that care. Neglect cannot be the sole verdict given by the Coroner, it can only be added to another verdict, for example, 'Death by misadventure contributed to by neglect'.
• Unlawful killing: Murder, manslaughter and infanticide, where the Coroner is certain beyond reasonable doubt.
• Lawful killing: Where lethal force was inflicted on the deceased but that this was justified, for example, in self-defence or to affect/assist the lawful arrest of an offender.
• Open verdict: An open verdict will be reached where there is insufficient evidence to prove another of the possible verdicts. It can also be used where the jury cannot agree on a decision.

Do I need a solicitor?

You may attend the inquest as an interested party, (someone directly concerned, such as a family member) or simply as a member of the public. As an interested party, you do not need to be legally represented. The Coroner will normally allow you the opportunity to raise questions in the inquest, but he will be mindful of the direction of questioning and the limits of the enquiry under coronial law. It is helpful if you notify him or the coroner's Officer in advance of the inquest if you wish to question the witnesses; the Coroner will then be able to ensure you have your opportunity at the inquest.

On the other hand, if you have concerns about the circumstances in which your relative came by their death, it is sensible to seek advice from a solicitor. You should choose a solicitor who specialises in personal injury or clinical negligence claims as appropriate. You will usually be able to obtain initial telephone advice or an initial interview free of charge. We have a large department specialising in personal injury and clinical negligence claims and offer a free initial interview.

A solicitor can help you by explaining the process of the inquest, can represent your wishes to the Coroner and can arrange for an independent post mortem to be performed (of course if the funeral has not already taken place). A solicitor may represent you at the inquest or may instruct a barrister to do so.

A solicitor will also be able to advise whether you might have a claim for compensation against any person or organisation involved.

Funding
Public funding (legal aid) is not available for inquests except in certain specific and exceptional circumstances. This is something that you should discuss with a solicitor. You will only be able to obtain public funding through a solicitor.

You may have legal expenses insurance; people are often unaware they have this cover as part of a wider policy, such as your household insurance. It is important that you check this promptly, as there are usually short time limits for making claims under such policies. Your solicitor will discuss this with you, and also other possible sources of funding or support available to you.

Otherwise, you would normally need to pay your legal costs from your own resources.

Further information

The organisations Liberty and Inquest have a considerable amount of helpful information on their websites. Other useful sites are:

• CRUSE. Exists to help bereaved people with counselling and support.
• Seesaw. Helps to provide grief support for the young in Oxfordshire.
• The Child Bereavement Trust. Works to help bereaved families.