An equivocal admission pre-inquest will not prevent costs being recovered

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service v Veevers [2020] EWHC 2550 (Comm) Can a family’s inquest costs be recovered in a subsequent civil claim if an admission has been made prior to the inquest? If the admission has in fact been informal or equivocal, the answer may well be yes. The background This claim arose […]

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Covid-19 Deaths and Possible Exposure in The Workplace: The Coroner’s Role

Chief Coroner’s Guidance No. 37, 28.4.2020 The Chief Coroner has today released his further guidance to coroners during the COVID-19 pandemic.  The Chief Coroner sets out when a report to a coroner must be made and when an inquest will and will not be required into a death from what is a naturally occurring disease. He […]

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Admitted failings in Article 2 inquests needn’t be part of the Coroner’s conclusion

R (Carole Smith) v HM Assistant Coroner for North West Wales [2020] EWHC 781 (Admin) The High Court has emphatically supported a Coroner’s decision not to record admitted, non-causative failings in an Article 2 inquest conclusion. The court’s observations about the proper content of a Record of Inquest (ROI) will be thought-provoking for all Coroners […]

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Remote Verification of Community Deaths During the Covid-19 Pandemic: Should family members be relied upon?

The steep increase in the number of deaths occurring outside hospital during the Covid-19 pandemic brings a concomitant rise in the number of deaths requiring verification in the community. Attending those who have died in the community clearly puts health care workers at increased risk of Covid-19 infection themselves.  In response the NHS has put out guidance […]

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Gambling addiction to be recorded in suicide conclusions?

The Bishop of St Albans, Dr Alan Smith has introduced a Bill aimed at using the coronial system to record where gambling addiction has contributed to suicide. If the Coroners (Determination of Suicide) Bill [HL] (HL Bill 32) is passed, then where the inquest’s conclusion is suicide, the coroner or jury will be required to […]

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