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Coroners Act
Coroners Act 1988
The Coroners Act (Coroners Act 1988) is a complex piece of legislation and covers the following areas. More detail can be found here.
Coroners
1. Appointment of coroners.
2. Qualifications for appointment as coroner.
3. Terms on which coroners hold office.
4. Coroners’ districts.
4A. Coroner areas: Wales.
5. Jurisdiction of coroners.
Deputy coroners
6. Appointment of deputy coroners.
7. Functions of deputy coroners.
Inquests: general
8. Duty to hold inquest.
9. Qualifications of jurors.
10. Attendance of jurors and witnesses.
11. Proceedings at inquest.
12. Failure of jury to agree.
Inquests: special cases
13. Order to hold investigation.
14. Inquest out of jurisdiction.
15. Inquest where body destroyed or irrecoverable.
16. Adjournment of inquest in event of criminal proceedings.
17. Provisions supplementary to section 16.
17A. Adjournment of inquest in event of judicial inquiry.
18. Inquests into road deaths in London.
Medical witnesses and post-mortem examinations etc.
19. Post-mortem examination without inquest.
20. Request to specially qualified person to make post-mortem and special examinations.
21. Summoning of medical witnesses and direction of post-mortem examinations.
22. Removal of body for post mortem examination.
23. Exhumation of body for examination.
Expenses and returns of inquests
24. Fees and allowances payable on holding inquest.
25. Payments to jurors.
26. Payment of expenses by coroner.
27. Accounts to be laid before relevant council.
27A. Indemnity.
28. Annual returns to be made to Secretary of State.
Miscellaneous
29. Coroner of the Queen’s household.
30. Treasure trove.
31. Provision of accommodation.
Supplemental
32. Power to make rules.
33. Savings for ex-officio coroners and judicial powers.
34. Application of Act to Isles of Scilly.
35. Interpretation.
36. Consequential amendments, repeals, transitional provisions and savings.
37. Short title, commencement and extent.
A coroners inquest may be triggered if the cause of a death is unknown, a death was violent or unnatural, death was sudden and unexplained."
Coroners can also become involved when person who died was not visited by a medical practitioner during their final illness, when a medical certificate isn’t available or when a person who died wasn’t seen by the doctor who signed the medical certificate within 14 days before death or after they died. Finally, inquests can be called when a death occurred during an operation or before the person came out of anaesthetic or when a medical certificate suggests the death may have been caused by an industrial disease or industrial poisoning.
The act is complex and covers many issues. In order to deal with matters relating to professionally, specialist legal experience in the Coroners Act is invaluable. If you are a professional involved in a coroner’s investigation requiring advice or representation we can help, equally, we can assist If someone close to you has died and their death has been reported to the coroner.
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