Costs against Coroners: being “neutral” means staying neutral, a partisan Coroner risks an adverse costs order.

R (Paul Worthington) v Senior Coroner for Cumbria [2018] EWHC 3386 (Admin) Many will recall the much publicised judicial review brought by the Adath Yisroel Burial Society[1], which led to the Senior Coroner for Inner North London’s “cab rank” burial policy being quashed. When it came to costs, the Court held that the Coroner had […]

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Poppi Worthington’s abuser fails to remove an account of his acts from the Record of Inquest

R (Worthington) v Senior Coroner for Cumbria [2018] EWHC 3386 (Admin) When public funding for deserving families at inquests is so hard to come by it is mystifying how the Legal Aid Agency can make a decision to spend their limited funds on an apparently unmeritorious challenge to inquest conclusions by one who was involved, […]

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The Grenfell Tower fire ‘Preventing Future Deaths’ report: the breadth and the limitations of PFDs.

The Senior Coroner for Inner West London, Dr Fiona Wilcox, has made a report to prevent future deaths[1] (a “PFD report”) in connection with her investigation into deaths following the Grenfell Tower fire. Her report, issued on 19 September 2018, is a good illustration of the potential breadth of a coroner’s powers: the report focuses […]

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Article 2 inquests and the burden of proof when the answer is “there is no answer”

In the matter of Hugh Jordan [2018] NICA 34 As the ongoing Maughan[1] litigation focuses minds on the standard of proof applicable for a suicide finding at an inquest, it is perhaps surprising how little thought is given to the issue of the burden of proof at an inquest. However, in the latest episode in […]

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Inquest Law Seminars and Training

Inquest Law Seminars Barristers from Serjeants’ Inn Chambers are available to present lectures and seminars on all aspects of Inquest Law. Our experienced inquest counsel, three of whom also sit as Assistant Coroners, are available to provide in-house training around the country whether small workshops at solicitors offices or at larger national meetings Recent seminars that have been […]

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