Mowlem Plc, Regina (on the Application Of) v District of Avon HM Assistant Deputy Coroner and Another: Admn 13 May 2005

The court has power to amend an inquisition by the substitution of words in an appropriate case. The power was only to be exercised with extreme caution: ‘The bottom line, so it seems to me, is that words can be thus substituted if they are words to which the decision-maker could not object as unreflective of his reasonable determination.’

Judges:

Wilson J

Citations:

[2005] EWHC 1359 (Admin)

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

CitedMinistry of Defence v Her Majesty’s Coroner for Wiltshire and Swindon and others Admn 13-Feb-2006
The ministry appealed against the verdict that the deceased had been unlawfully killed. He had ingested sarin during an experiment on him at Porton Down in 1953. The court was asked itself to amend the verdict.
Held: There had been a full . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 20 December 2022; Ref: scu.228217

Regina v Birmingham Coroner’s Court Ex Parte Najada: CA 4 Dec 1995

At the inquest, the coroner had quizzed the applicant about his evidence but had not warned him, as he was required to do, about the possibility of self incrimination. The doctor then sought a review of the coroner’s verdict. The coroner now applied to have the judicial review adjourned pending the conclusion of other, criminal proceedings.
Held: It was for the person seeking to have a judicial review adjourned to justify the request. The applicant had a right to have it said that the coroner’s verdict had had A judicial review case should normally to be heard straight away, but it may be delayed to await the outcome of a criminal trial. If the applicant succeded at the criminal trial, the judicial review need not proceed in any event. The judge’s order adjourning the judicial review was upheld.

Judges:

Neill, Auld, Iain Glidewell LJJ

Citations:

Times 05-Dec-1995, Ind Summary 04-Dec-1995

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Judicial Review, Coroners

Updated: 09 December 2022; Ref: scu.86140

Evans, Regina (on The Application of) v HM Coroner for Cardiff and The Vale of Glamorgan: Admn 3 Dec 2010

The claimant nurse sought judicial review of a finding by the coroner of an unlawful killing after the administration by the claimant to the deceased of a tenfold overdose of medication.

Judges:

Wilkie J

Citations:

[2010] EWHC 3478 (Admin), [2010] Inquest LR 217

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Coroners, Health Professions

Updated: 09 December 2022; Ref: scu.443287

Allen, Regina (On the Application of) v Coroner for Inner North London: CA 25 Jun 2009

Judges:

Dyson LJ

Citations:

[2009] EWCA Civ 623, [2009] LS Law Medical 430

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

CitedLewis, Regina (on The Application of) v HM Coroner for The Mid and North Division of The County of Shropshire and Another CA 21-Dec-2009
The claimant’s son was found hanging in his prison cell. He appealed refusal of a judicial review of the coroner’s decision not to put to the jury a question as to certain possible causative matters. The youth was seen hanging, but the guard called . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 06 December 2022; Ref: scu.347195

P, Regina (On the Application of) v HM Coroner for the District Of Avon: Admn 5 Mar 2009

The deceased was found suspended by a sheet in her prison cell. The jury found accidental death, not being satisfied that she was not issuing a cry for help. The family appealed saying that the jury had not been directed that they could provide a narrative verdict to explain further their conclusions.
Held: The jury had not been misdirected but that, even if there had been a misdirection as claimed, he would not have remitted the matter for a new inquest because, taking into account a report of the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman published shortly before the inquest, the investigative obligation imposed upon the state by Article 2 had been effectively discharged.
Beatson J said: ‘I reject the submission that it was incumbent on the Coroner to direct the jury expressly that a narrative summary should be added to a short form verdict. That essentially would have created a hybrid. The jury had three options open to them. They were ‘enabled’ to express their conclusions on the core facts if they considered that the two short form verdicts did not do so.
I also conclude that it is possible to infer from this verdict that the accident verdict was sufficient to express the jury’s factual conclusions and conclusion that there was insufficient evidence that the 12 acts or omissions contributed to the death in more than a minimal or trivial way.’

Judges:

Beatson J

Citations:

[2009] EWHC 820 (Admin)

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights 2

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

Appeal fromP, Regina (on The Application of) v HM Coroner for The District of Avon CA 18-Dec-2009
The deceased was found hanging in her prison cell. The jury returned a verdict of accidental death, not being satisfied that she was not merely making a cry for help. The family appealed a finding that the inquest had satisfied the requirement for a . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners, Prisons, Human Rights

Updated: 06 December 2022; Ref: scu.341842

Regina v Coroner for Surrey, ex parte Wright: 18 Jun 1966

The deceased died when unconscious under general anaesthetic in the course of dental surgery, as a result of an obstruction to his airway.
Held: There was no basis in such circumstances for contending that the verdict of accident should have been that of neglect.

Judges:

Tucker J

Citations:

Unreported, 18 June 1966

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

CitedRegina v North Humberside and Scunthorpe Coroner ex parte Jamieson CA 27-Apr-1994
The deceased prisoner had hanged himself. He had been a known suicide risk, and his brother said that the authorities being so aware, the death resulted from their lack of care. The inquest heard in full the circumstannces leading up to the death, . .
CitedIn re Catherine Lucy Clegg (an Application to Quash Inquisition on Inquest) Admn 2-Dec-1996
The father of the deceased sought an order quashing the inquest on her death. He had recorded a verdict of suicide. She had died from acute salicylate poisoning, an aspirin overdose. The hospital was said not to have recognised her condition and not . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 06 December 2022; Ref: scu.237544

Guardians of the Society of Keelman on the River Tyne v Davison: 1864

Citations:

(1864) 16 CBNS 612

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

ConsideredRegina v East Sussex Coroner Ex parte Healy QBD 1988
The death occurred whilst diving some eight or nine miles offshore. The applicant, the deceased’s father challenged the coroner’s decision to refuse jurisdiction for an inquest.
Held: The body was not, in the terms of the 1926 Act, ‘in or near . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 06 December 2022; Ref: scu.229167

Green v Johnston: 1995

(Victoria High Court) Beach J: ‘In a multicultural society, such as we have in this country, it is my opinion that great weight should be given to the cultural and spiritual laws and practices of various cultural groups forming our society, and that great care should be taken to ensure that their laws and practices, assuming they are otherwise lawful, are not disregarded or abused.’

Judges:

Beach J

Citations:

(1995) 2 VR 176

Jurisdiction:

Australia

Coroners

Updated: 01 December 2022; Ref: scu.238300

Revenue and Customs, Regina (on The Application of) v HM Coroner for The City of Liverpool: Admn 21 May 2014

The Coroner, conducting an investigation into a person’s death, issued notices under para 1(2) of Schedule 5 to the Coroners and Justice Act 2009, requiring the Revenue and Customs Commissioners to provide occupational information concerning the deceased for the purpose of investigating whether he had died as a result of an industrial disease. The Commissioner sought judicial review of the decision to issue those notices and asserted that the 2009 Act, which did not expressly bind the Crown, did not do so by necessary implication either. The Revenue said that compliance with the notice would pt them in breach of their own duties of confidentiality under the 2005 Act.
Held: Schedule 5 to the CJA 2009 binds the Crown by necessary implication. It follows that the Notices constituted an ‘order of court’ within s.18(2)(e), CRCA 2005, binding on HMRC. It follows further that the duty of confidentiality flowing from s.18(1), CRCA 2005 was displaced and HMRC was entitled to comply with the Notices.

Judges:

Gross LJ, Burnett J

Citations:

[2014] EWHC 1586 (Admin), [2015] 1 QB 481, [2014] 3 WLR 1660, [2014] WLR(D) 226

Links:

Bailii, WLRD

Statutes:

Coroners and Justice Act 2009, Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005, European Convention of Human Rights 2

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

Dictum adoptedThe British Broadcasting Corporation v Johns (HM Inspector of Taxes) CA 5-Mar-1964
The BBC claimed to be exempt from income tax. It claimed crown immunity as an emanation of the crown. The court had to decide whether the BBC was subject to judicial review.
Held: It is not a statutory creature; it does not exercise statutory . .

Cited by:

CitedBlack, Regina (on The Application of) v Secretary of State for Justice Admn 5-Mar-2015
The serving prisoner said that new general restrictions on smoking in public buildings applied also in prisons. were a breach of his human rights. The only spaces where prisoners were allowed now to smoke were their cells, and he would share cells . .
CitedSecretary of State for Justice v Black CA 8-Mar-2016
The Secretary of State appealed against a declaration that the provisions prohibiting smoking in pubic places applied in prisons.
Held: The appeal succeeded. . .
CitedBlack, Regina (on The Application of) v Secretary of State for Justice SC 19-Dec-2017
The Court was asked whether the Crown is bound by the prohibition of smoking in most enclosed public places and workplaces, contained in Chapter 1 of Part 1 of the Health Act 2006.
Held: However reluctantly, the claimant’s appeal was . .
CitedBlack, Regina (on The Application of) v Secretary of State for Justice Admn 5-Mar-2015
The serving prisoner said that new general restrictions on smoking in public buildings applied also in prisons. were a breach of his human rights. The only spaces where prisoners were allowed now to smoke were their cells, and he would share cells . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners, Taxes Management, Information, Human Rights

Updated: 27 November 2022; Ref: scu.526075

Warren, Regina (on the Application of) v Her Majesty’s Assistant Coroner for Northamptonshire: Admn 29 Apr 2008

The deceased had committed suicide in his prison cell. Prison officers were charged with manslaughter by gross neglect, but they were discharged. The applicant sought now to challenge the refusal of the coroner to allow to be called to give evidence a psychiatrist who had provided a report to the family’s solicitors. The coroner felt that he already had sufficient medical evidence from a psychiatrist in the Prison Service, and that the expert witness sought to be called had insufficient experience of work in prisons. The family said that the coroner required somebody independent.
Held: It was not for the court to say what witnesses should be called by the coroner, but it was necessary that the coroner shoud have available evidence independent of the prisons service, to comply with his article 2 duties, and also that he should in this case have evidence from a GP.

Judges:

Foskett J

Citations:

[2008] EWHC 966 (Admin)

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights 2

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

CitedBloggs 61, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department CA 18-Jun-2003
The applicant sought review of a decision to remove him from a witness protection scheme within the prison. He claimed that having been promised protection, he had a legitimate expectation of protection, having been told he would receive protection . .
CitedMiddleton, Regina (on the Application of) v Coroner for the Western District of Somerset HL 11-Mar-2004
The deceased had committed suicide in prison. His family felt that the risk should have been known to the prison authorities, and that they had failed to guard against that risk. The coroner had requested an explanatory note from the jury.
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 27 November 2022; Ref: scu.267578

Regina v HM Coroner for Birmingham, Ex parte Secretary of State for the Home Department: 1990

Citations:

(1990) 155 JP 107

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

CitedMiddleton, Regina (on the Application of) v Coroner for the Western District of Somerset HL 11-Mar-2004
The deceased had committed suicide in prison. His family felt that the risk should have been known to the prison authorities, and that they had failed to guard against that risk. The coroner had requested an explanatory note from the jury.
CitedMiddleton, Regina (on the Application of) v Coroner for the Western District of Somerset Admn 14-Dec-2001
The deceased had committed suicide whilst in prison. It was argued that the prison should have recognised that he was a suicide risk, and acted accordingly. The coroner had requested a note from the jury as to the cause of death. The court . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 24 November 2022; Ref: scu.194500

Regina v Walthamstow Coroner, Ex parte Rubenstein: 19 Feb 1982

The 1988 Act was a consolidating Act.

Citations:

Unreported, 19 February 1982

Statutes:

Coroners Act 1988 83

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

CitedMiddleton, Regina (on the Application of) v Coroner for the Western District of Somerset HL 11-Mar-2004
The deceased had committed suicide in prison. His family felt that the risk should have been known to the prison authorities, and that they had failed to guard against that risk. The coroner had requested an explanatory note from the jury.
CitedMiddleton, Regina (on the Application of) v Coroner for the Western District of Somerset Admn 14-Dec-2001
The deceased had committed suicide whilst in prison. It was argued that the prison should have recognised that he was a suicide risk, and acted accordingly. The coroner had requested a note from the jury as to the cause of death. The court . .
CitedHurst, Regina (on the Application of) v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis v London Northern District Coroner HL 28-Mar-2007
The claimant’s son had been stabbed to death. She challenged the refusal of the coroner to continue with the inquest with a view to examining the responsibility of any of the police in having failed to protect him.
Held: The question amounted . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 24 November 2022; Ref: scu.194499

Regina v Inner London South District Coroner Ex Parte Douglas-Williams: CA 30 Jul 1998

A coroner had the right not to leave all possible verdicts to a jury, even including one possibly supported by the evidence, where the overwhelming evidence pointed one way, and possible confusion of jury might be caused by leaving all verdicts to them.
Lord Woolf said of exercising a judicial discretion: ‘When it comes to exercising this discretion I cannot suggest a better test for a court to apply when deciding whether it should give relief than that it should be ‘necessary or desirable to do so in the interest of justice’.’

Citations:

Times 04-Sep-1998, [1998] EWCA Civ 1343, [1999] 1 All ER 344

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

CitedRegina v Galbraith CCA 1981
Rejection of Submission of No Case to Answer
The defendant had faced a charge of affray. The court having rejected his submission of having no case to answer, he had made an exculpatory statement from the dock. He appealed against his conviction.
Held: Lord Lane LCJ said: ‘How then . .
See AlsoRegina v HM Coroner for Inner London South District, ex parte Douglas-Williams CA 29-Jan-1998
The deceased died in custody. The jury returned a verdict of accidental death. It was suggested that the coroner’s direction as to unlawful killing had been confusing, and that he was wrong not to leave open the possibility of a verdict of neglect. . .

Cited by:

CitedKhan, Regina (on the Application of) v HM Coroner for West Hertfordshire and Another Admn 7-Mar-2002
The deceased died in police custody. The coroner refused to leave to the jury possible verdicts of unlawful killing, or death contributed to by neglect, or breach of his right to life. He adjourned the hearing to allow this challenge.
Held: . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 23 November 2022; Ref: scu.144822

Assistant Deputy Coroner of Inner West London v Paul and Another, Regina on the Application of: CA 28 Nov 2007

The coroner appealed a judicial review granted after he allowed into evidence, hearsay evidence contained in a written statemnent from a witness who could not attend the inquest.
Held: Rule 37 does not allow the admission of a document, even where the maker is unable to attend. Rule 37 replaced a rule which applied to all documents, not just those which were uncontroversial. The appeal was dismissed.

Judges:

Waller LJ, Latham LJ, Dyson LJ

Citations:

[2007] EWCA Civ 1259, Times 11-Dec-2007, [2007] Inquest LR 270, [2008] 1 All ER 981, [2008] 1 WLR 1335

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

Coroners Rules 1984 37

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

CitedRex v Divine KBD 1930
Talbot J discussed the need for evidence before a coroner to be sworn evidence: ‘Again it is clear that a coroner’s inquest is not bound by the strict law of evidence.
No doubt a coroner has considerable latitude as to the way in which he may . .
CitedRegina v North Humberside and Scunthorpe Coroner ex parte Jamieson QBD 12-Jul-1993
A prisoner had hanged himself after being left unsupervised in a single cell. He was a known suicide risk, but the Coroner directed the jury not to return a verdict which included any reference to lack of care.
Held: A coroner was free not to . .
CitedRegina v South London Coroner ex parte Thompson 8-Jul-1982
The court discussed the function of the coroner and his inquest.
Lord Lane CJ said: ‘The coroner’s task in a case such as this is a formidable one, and no one would dispute that; that is quite apart from the difficulties which inevitably arise . .
CitedRegina v HM Attorney-General for Northern Ireland and Another Ex Parte Devine CANI 1992
An inquest was held into three deaths thought to be at the hands of British soldiers. The coroner had admitted written evidence from statements taken by British officers on the basis that the makers of the statements were not compellable as . .
CitedRegina v HM Attorney-General for Northern Ireland and Another Ex Parte Devine, Same Ex Parte Breslin HL 1-Apr-1992
The Coroner had held an inquest into the deaths of three persons who had been shot by soldiers. The Coroner had admitted statements made by the soldiers under Rule 17 of the Northern Ireland Rules. Those statements had been produced in evidence by . .
CitedMcKerr v Armagh Coroner HL 1990
It is for the coroner to decide how to adduce the necessary evidence as to death. Lord Goff discussed Rule 17 of the 1980 Rules: ‘Nor, in my opinion, does the mere fact that a rule restricts the power of a coroner as to the evidence which he may . .
CitedRegina v Southwark Coroner, ex parte Hicks QBD 1987
The verdict of ‘lack of care’ at an inquest is to be used to indicate only the condition of the deceased at the time of death as a cause of death, and is not to be used as a way of attributing fault. The admission of documentary evidence by a . .
Appeal fromPaul and Another, Regina (on the Application of) v Assistant Deputy Coroner of Inner West London Admn 20-Nov-2007
. .
See AlsoPaul and others v Deputy Coroner of the Queen’s Household and Another Admn 2-Mar-2007
The applicants sought judicial review of preliminary directions given for the intended inquest on the deaths of Diana Princess of Wales and of Dodi Al Fayed. It was submitted that the jurisdiction had been wrongly transferred to the Queen’s Coroner . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 22 November 2022; Ref: scu.261634

Main, Regina (on the Application of) v Minister for Legal Aid: Admn 2 Apr 2007

The applicants were relatives of victims of a rail accident. They challenged the refusal of legal aid for representation at the coroners inquest.
Held: Judicial review was granted. The minister’s decision was flawed in that he had failed to allow for the fact that the issues to be aired in the cases were both of wide public interest and of potential benefit for the public as a whole, and that the interetss of those appearing before the inquest would be divergent.

Judges:

Owen J

Citations:

[2007] EWHC 742 (Admin), Times 09-May-2007

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights 2

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Legal Aid, Coroners, Human Rights

Updated: 22 November 2022; Ref: scu.251161

Scholes v Secretary of State for the Home Department: CA 17 Oct 2006

The deceased had committed suicide whilst in prison. The judge had requested that prison should be told of the risk of self harm. The mother appealed refusal of the judge to grant a judicial review of the Home Secretary’s refusal to grant, as requested by the coroner. A public inquiry into the pre-sentence exercise, the allocation process and the availability and provision of local authority secure children’s homes.
Held: The respondent had demonstrated a proper awareness of the additional issues. The inquest itself had involved an inquiry, and the respondent had ordered additional investigations short of a public inquiry. Those together satisfied the obligations under article 2.

Judges:

Lord Justice Pill and Lady Justice Arden

Citations:

Times 10-Nov-2006, [2006] EWCA Civ 1343

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights 2

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

Appeal fromScholes, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department Admn 16-Jan-2006
The deceased had committed suicide whilst in a Young Offenders Institute. The coroner had called for a further enquiry into the way he had been sentenced. The Home Office refused a public enquiry saying that the coroner’s inquest had satisfied its . .

Cited by:

CitedGentle, Regina (on the Application of) and Another v The Prime Minister and Another HL 9-Apr-2008
The appellants were mothers of two servicemen who had died whilst on active service in Iraq. They appealed refusal to grant a public inquiry. There had already been coroners inquests. They said that Article 2 had been infringed.
Held: The . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners, Human Rights, Prisons

Updated: 22 November 2022; Ref: scu.245586

Chaudhari, Regina (on the Application of) v Walthamstow Coroners Court: CA 26 Mar 2002

The family appealed refusal of a judicial review of the coroner’s decision on the death of their infant daughter. She had had a terminal condition, but the claimants believed tha her death had been caused by her doctors

Judges:

Sedley LJ

Citations:

[2002] EWCA Civ 495

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Coroners

Updated: 22 November 2022; Ref: scu.216899

Paul and Another, Regina (on the Application of) v Assistant Deputy Coroner of Inner West London: Admn 20 Nov 2007

Judges:

Thomas LJ

Citations:

[2007] EWHC 2721 (Admin)

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

Appeal fromAssistant Deputy Coroner of Inner West London v Paul and Another, Regina on the Application of CA 28-Nov-2007
The coroner appealed a judicial review granted after he allowed into evidence, hearsay evidence contained in a written statemnent from a witness who could not attend the inquest.
Held: Rule 37 does not allow the admission of a document, even . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 19 November 2022; Ref: scu.261498

Sreedharan, Regina (on The Application of) v HM Coroner for The County of Greater Manchester and Others: CA 26 Mar 2013

The deceased died of a drug and alcohol combination. The appellant doctor had prescribed the drug. He appealed against a refusal to grant review of the coroner’s conduct of the inquest.

Judges:

Lord Dyson MR, Maurice Kay, Hallett LJJ

Citations:

[2013] EWCA Civ 181

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Coroners

Updated: 14 November 2022; Ref: scu.472030

Regina v Her Majesty’s Coroner for Exeter and East Devon ex parte Palmer: CA 10 Dec 1997

The deceased died in Dartmoor prison. He had been held in seclusion. When visited he was said to have attacked the guards. He was restrained until a body belt could be brought. The period of restraint exceeded the maximum recommended, and the deceased suffered a condition (unknown to him or the officers) which made it particularly risky for him. He died later. The family made a renewed application for leave to bring judicial review of a decision of the coroner not to leave a verdict of unlawful killing to the jury.
Held: As to the applicaion of Wedenesbury in Coroners cases: ‘there are different tests inherent in the Wednesbury approach. The first is whether there is a mistake of law. If the deciding body has made a mistake of law, then the courts can intervene to correct that mistake. Secondly, they can intervene if the body making the decision has failed to take into account a consideration which they are required to take into account, or has taken into account a consideration which they are not entitled to take into account. Thirdly, applying the test to a Coroner, the courts can do so where a Coroner has acted in such a way which no reasonable Coroner would act, having properly directed himself as to the law. ‘ The difficulty, as here, was where there was some evidence. In such a case where the matter is borderline, it is for the Coroner to exercise a discretion. For any allegation of manslaughter, a causal connection had to be established between the unlawful act and the death. Here the doctor’s evidence could properly be read to exclude that connection: ‘The Galbraith decision makes it clear that this is one of the cases where it would be unsafe to leave unlawful killing to the jury. ‘ The application was refused.

Judges:

Lord Woolf MR

Citations:

[1997] EWCA Civ 2951

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

ExplainedAssociated Provincial Picture Houses Ltd v Wednesbury Corporation CA 10-Nov-1947
Administrative Discretion to be Used Reasonably
The applicant challenged the manner of decision making as to the conditions which had been attached to its licence to open the cinema on Sundays. It had not been allowed to admit children under 15 years of age. The statute provided no appeal . .
CitedRegina v Galbraith CCA 1981
Rejection of Submission of No Case to Answer
The defendant had faced a charge of affray. The court having rejected his submission of having no case to answer, he had made an exculpatory statement from the dock. He appealed against his conviction.
Held: Lord Lane LCJ said: ‘How then . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 13 November 2022; Ref: scu.143350

Kent County Council, Regina (on The Application of) v HM Coroner for The County of Kent (North-West District) and Others: Admn 15 Oct 2012

The council sought review of the coroner’s decision that the inquest would be an article 2 inquest and with a jury. The deceased was 14 years old and had taken methadone. In the months before his death, he had had involvement with the council’s social services department, and he had been assessed to be at considerable risk. A serious cases review had identified many opportunities to help him had been missed.
Held: The request for review succeeded. Foskett J said: ‘the instant case, involving a vulnerable child in the circumstances we have outlined, enters into the potential territory of operational duty . . the question to be considered . . is whether there was a real and immediate risk to the life of EB in the period before his death.’ There was insufficient evidence of such a risk. However the decision to have a jury trial stood.

Judges:

Foskett J, Peter Thornton QC

Citations:

[2012] EWHC 2768 (Admin)

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention of Human Rights 2

Citing:

CitedRegina v North Humberside and Scunthorpe Coroner ex parte Jamieson CA 27-Apr-1994
The deceased prisoner had hanged himself. He had been a known suicide risk, and his brother said that the authorities being so aware, the death resulted from their lack of care. The inquest heard in full the circumstannces leading up to the death, . .
CitedMcCann and Others v The United Kingdom ECHR 6-Oct-1995
Wrong assumptions made by police officers in the killing of terrorists amounted to a human rights breach, despite the existence of danger to the public of an imminent attack. Article 2(1) is ‘one of the most fundamental provisions in the . .
CitedMiddleton, Regina (on the Application of) v Coroner for the Western District of Somerset HL 11-Mar-2004
The deceased had committed suicide in prison. His family felt that the risk should have been known to the prison authorities, and that they had failed to guard against that risk. The coroner had requested an explanatory note from the jury.
CitedRabone and Another v Pennine Care NHS Foundation SC 8-Feb-2012
The claimant’s daughter had committed suicide whilst on home leave from a hospital where she had stayed as a voluntary patient with depression. Her admission had followed a suicide attempt. The hospital admitted negligence but denied that it owed . .
CitedIn re Officer L HL 31-Jul-2007
Police officers appealed against refusal of orders protecting their anonymity when called to appear before the Robert Hamill Inquiry.
Held: ‘The tribunal accordingly approached the matter properly under article 2 in seeking to ascertain . .
CitedMitchell and Another v Glasgow City Council HL 18-Feb-2009
(Scotland) The pursuers were the widow and daughter of a tenant of the respondent who had been violently killed by his neighbour. They said that the respondent, knowing of the neighbour’s violent behaviours had a duty of care to the deceased and . .
CitedHertfordshire Police v Van Colle; Smith v Chief Constable of Sussex Police HL 30-Jul-2008
Police Obligations to Witnesses is Limited
A prosecution witness was murdered by the accused shortly before his trial. The parents of the deceased alleged that the failure of the police to protect their son was a breach of article 2.
Held: The House was asked ‘If the police are alerted . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners, Human Rights

Updated: 05 November 2022; Ref: scu.464850

Keyu and Others v Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and Another: Admn 4 Sep 2012

It was said that a squad of the British army had caused the deaths of 24 civilians in 1948 in Batang Kali (now part of Malaysia.
Held: No inquiry was required. It was a matter of discretion, and there were no sustainable reasons for overturning the decisions of the respondents.

Judges:

Sir John Thomas P, Treacy J

Citations:

[2012] EWHC 2445 (Admin), [2012] WLR(D) 261

Links:

Bailii, WLRD

Statutes:

Inquiries Act 2005 1, Human Rights Act 1998, European Convention on Human Rights

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

CitedIn re McKerr (Northern Ireland) HL 11-Mar-2004
The deceased had been shot by soldiers of the British Army whilst in a car in Northern Ireland. The car was alleged to have ‘run’ a checkpoint. The claimants said the investigation, now 20 years ago, had been inadequate. The claim was brought under . .

Cited by:

Appeal fromKeyu and Others v Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and Another CA 19-Mar-2014
In 1948, there had been an incident in what later became part of Malaysia, in a counter insurgency patrol, when 24 civilians were said to have been killed by a patrol from the Scots Guards. The claimant now appealed against the refusal of a further . .
At first instanceKeyu and Others v Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and Another SC 25-Nov-2015
The Court was asked whether the respondents should be required to hold a public inquiry into a controversial series of events in 1948, when a Scots Guards patrol was alleged to shot and killed 24 unarmed civilians in a village called Batang Kali, in . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners, Human Rights, Armed Forces

Updated: 04 November 2022; Ref: scu.463812

Forde v The Attorney General: CANI 18 Jun 2009

This appeal raises an important question of coronial law, namely whether under existing Northern Ireland law a coroner has jurisdiction to hold an inquest into the death of a person who died abroad whose body has been returned to Northern Ireland for burial or cremation.

Judges:

Kerr LCJ, Girvan LJ and Coghlin LJ

Citations:

[2009] NICA 66

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

Northern Ireland

Coroners

Updated: 01 November 2022; Ref: scu.431847

LePage, Regina (on The Application of) v HM Assistant Deputy Coroner for Inner South London and Others: Admn 30 May 2012

The claimant sought judicial review of a coroner’s decisions in the conduct of an inquest into the death of a young woman. She died in police custody. She was said to have taken drugs.

Judges:

Owen J, Peter Thornton QC HHJ

Citations:

[2012] EWHC 1485 (Admin)

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

CitedBirks, Regina (On the Application of) v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis Admn 25-Sep-2014
The claimant police officer sought judicial review of a decision to continue his suspension. He had been investigated and cleared after a death in custody. He sought to join the Church of England Ministry and was offered a post. He was re-assured . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 31 October 2022; Ref: scu.459826

JL, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department: CA 24 Jul 2007

The court was asked to order a public enquiry into an attempted suicide in prison. Waller LJ was anxious about the task of defining suicide and near suicide: ‘I am clear that the simple fact of a death or serious injury of a person in custody gives rise to an obligation on the State to conduct the enhanced type of investigation. The extent of the investigation will depend on the circumstances . . As regards the nature of the investigation it seems to me that a death or near death in custody ipso facto means that the State must commence an investigation by a person independent of those implicated in the facts. The extent to which there must then be some further inquiry in the nature of a public hearing in which the next of kin or injured person can play a part will depend on the circumstances. In the case of a death there will be an inquest, and the coroner may have to decide whether the circumstances are such as to require something [further]. In cases of serious injury the nature of the further inquiry necessary will depend on the facts as discovered by the independent investigator.’

Judges:

Waller LJ, Maurice Kay LJ, Wilson LJ

Citations:

[2007] EWCA Civ 767, [2008] 1 WLR 158, [2007] Inquest LR 202, [2007] HRLR 39, [2007] ACD 95

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights 2

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

Appeal fromJL, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department Admn 1-Nov-2006
Duty to investigate attempted suicide in prison. . .

Cited by:

Appeal fromJL, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for Justice; Regina (L (A Patient)) v Secretary of State for the Home Department HL 26-Nov-2008
The prisoner was left with serious injury after attempting suicide in prison. He said that there was a human rights duty to hold an investigation into the circumstances leading up to this.
Held: There existed a similar duty to hold an enhanced . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Prisons, Human Rights, Coroners

Updated: 31 October 2022; Ref: scu.258363

Smith v The Assistant Deputy Coroner for Oxfordshire: Admn 11 Apr 2008

The claimant’s son had died of hyperthermia whilst serving in the army in Iraq. The parties requested a new inquisition after the coroner had rules that human rights law did not apply to servicemen serving outside Europe. Reports had been prepared but were not disclosed to the coroner until the last day of the inquest and had not been admitted to evidence.
Held: Comments in the Gentle case were obiter. The claimant’s case succeeded. The right to life may protect soldiers serving outside Europe in situations where as here the service was in effective control of an area.

Judges:

Collins J

Citations:

[2008] EWHC 694 (Admin), Times 30-May-2008, [2008] 3 WLR 1284, (2008) 103 BMLR 152, [2008] ACD 45

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights 2

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

CitedGentle, Regina (on the Application of) and Another v The Prime Minister and Another HL 9-Apr-2008
The appellants were mothers of two servicemen who had died whilst on active service in Iraq. They appealed refusal to grant a public inquiry. There had already been coroners inquests. They said that Article 2 had been infringed.
Held: The . .
CitedBankovic v Belgium ECHR 12-Dec-2001
(Grand Chamber) Air strikes were carried out by NATO forces against radio and television facilities in Belgrade on 23 April 1999. The claims of five of the applicants arose out of the deaths of relatives in this raid. The sixth claimed on his own . .
CitedSecretary of State for Defence v Al-Skeini and others (The Redress Trust Intervening) HL 13-Jun-2007
Complaints were made as to the deaths of six Iraqi civilians which were the result of actions by a member or members of the British armed forces in Basra. One of them, Mr Baha Mousa, had died as a result of severe maltreatment in a prison occupied . .
CitedSerco Ltd v Lawson; Botham v Ministry of Defence; Crofts and others v Veta Limited HL 26-Jan-2006
Mr Lawson was employed by Serco as a security supervisor at the British RAF base on Ascension Island, which is a dependency of the British Overseas Territory of St Helena. Mr Botham was employed as a youth worker at various Ministry of Defence . .
CitedMartin v The United Kingdom ECHR 24-Oct-2006
The claimant was living with his family with the Army in Germany. Though he was a civilian, he was convicted by a court martial of murder. He complained that it was wrong that he had been subject to a military tribunal and that there had been an . .
CitedMulcahy v Ministry of Defence CA 21-Feb-1996
A soldier in the Artillery Regiment was serving in Saudi Arabia in the course of the Gulf war. He was injured when he was part of a team managing a Howitzer, which was firing live rounds into Iraq, and he was standing in front of the gun when it was . .
CitedJordan v United Kingdom; McKerr v United Kingdom; similar ECHR 4-May-2001
Proper Investigation of Deaths with Army or Police
Claims were made as regards deaths of alleged terrorists in clashes with the UK armed forces and police. In some cases the investigations necessary to justify the taking of life had been inadequate. Statements made to the inquiry as to the . .
CitedMiddleton, Regina (on the Application of) v Coroner for the Western District of Somerset HL 11-Mar-2004
The deceased had committed suicide in prison. His family felt that the risk should have been known to the prison authorities, and that they had failed to guard against that risk. The coroner had requested an explanatory note from the jury.

Cited by:

Appeal fromSecretary of State for Defence v Smith, Regina (on the Application of) CA 18-May-2009
The soldier had died of heatstroke after exercises in Iraq. The Minister appealed against a finding that the circumstances of his death required an investigation compliant with Article 2 human rights, saying that he was not subject to such . .
At First InstanceSmith, Regina (on The Application of) v Secretary of State for Defence and Oxfordshire Assistant Deputy Coroner (Equality and Human Rights Commission intervening) SC 30-Jun-2010
The deceased soldier died of heat exhaustion whilst on active service in Iraq. It was said that he was owed a duty under human rights laws, and that any coroner’s inquest should be a fuller one to satisfy the state’s duty under Article 2.
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners, Human Rights

Updated: 27 October 2022; Ref: scu.266897

Khan, Regina (on the Application Of) v Secretary of State for Health: Admn 17 Jun 2003

Citations:

[2003] EWHC 1414 (Admin)

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

CitedIn re McKerr (Northern Ireland) HL 11-Mar-2004
The deceased had been shot by soldiers of the British Army whilst in a car in Northern Ireland. The car was alleged to have ‘run’ a checkpoint. The claimants said the investigation, now 20 years ago, had been inadequate. The claim was brought under . .
Appeal fromKhan, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for Health CA 10-Oct-2003
The claimant’s child had died as a result of negligence in hospital. The parents had been told the result of police investigation and decision not to prosecute, and the hospital’s own investigation, but had not been sufficiently involved. There . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Health Professions, Coroners

Updated: 26 October 2022; Ref: scu.185375

Worthington, Regina (on The Application of) v The Mother of Poppi Worthington and Others: Admn 11 Dec 2018

A 13 month old child had died. The coroner found that the cause had been an unsafe sleeping environment, but his verdict also made reference to a fact as found that she had been anally penetrated in the hours before her death. The father now applied to have those references removed from the review.
Held: The request was refused: ‘although bound to remain within the scope of section 10, it would be wrong as a matter of principle for this court to attempt to micromanage inquests by constraining the proper discretion of a Coroner to record the answer to the ‘how’ question in light of all his findings of fact. A court should be cautious before interfering to require the striking out of unchallengeable findings of fact which a coroner has carefully considered to be sufficiently important by way of explanation of the means of death to include them within a determination of a section 5(1) question including how an individual came by his or her death.’

Citations:

[2018] EWHC 3386 (Admin)

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

Coroners and Justice Act 2009

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Coroners

Updated: 15 October 2022; Ref: scu.631225

McLeish, Regina (on The Application of) v HM Coroner for The Northern District of Greater London: Admn 17 Nov 2010

The claimant’s son had died in 2007. The claimant complained of the fact that an inquest had not yet taken place.

Judges:

Calvert Smith J

Citations:

[2010] EWHC 3624 (Admin), [2010] Inquest LR 202

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Coroners

Updated: 17 September 2022; Ref: scu.442711

Mack, Regina (on The Application of) v Coroner for Birmingham and Solihull and Others: CA 10 May 2011

Appeal against refusal to quash an inquest. The deceased was aged 77 and died after a hip operation in hospital. He had until then been in good health.

Judges:

Neuberger MR, Toulson, Etherton LJJ

Citations:

[2011] EWCA Civ 712

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Coroners

Updated: 15 September 2022; Ref: scu.441232

Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs v Assistant Deputy Coroner for Inner North London: Admn 27 Jun 2013

The coroner was to hold an inquest into the death of Alexander Litvinenko, a prominent Russian exile. The Secretary of State issued a public interest immunity certificate in respect of several documents sought for the inquest, which, in part, the Coroner rejected. The court considered the possibility that a Properly Interested Person should be allowed as interested parties, and whether any proceedings, or part of them might not be held openly.
Held: It was at the court’s discretion within the rules to decide whether a person should be joined as an interested third party in judicial review proceedings. That someone had been accepted as a properly interested person by the Coroner, that does not mean that he need be such on a judicial review.

Judges:

Goldring, Treacy LJJ, Mitting J

Citations:

[2013] EWHC 1786 (Admin), [2013] WLR(D) 261

Links:

Bailii, WLRD, Gazette

Statutes:

Coroners Rules 1984

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

CitedRegina v South London Coroner ex parte Thompson 8-Jul-1982
The court discussed the function of the coroner and his inquest.
Lord Lane CJ said: ‘The coroner’s task in a case such as this is a formidable one, and no one would dispute that; that is quite apart from the difficulties which inevitably arise . .
CitedRegina on the application of Ahmed v HM Coroner South and East Cumbria 2009
Irwin J considered the wide discretion given to Coroners: ‘There is no hard and fast obligation on the part of the Coroner to disclose any witness statements or material: it is a matter of the exercise of discretion.’ . .

Cited by:

See AlsoSecretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs v Assistant Deputy Coroner for Inner North London Admn 27-Nov-2013
The SS had claimed public interest immunity (PII) in respect of several documents requested for an inquest into the death of Alexander Litvinenko, a prominent Russian exile. The coroner had rejected the claim for several, and the SS now appealed. . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners, Litigation Practice, Judicial Review

Updated: 10 September 2022; Ref: scu.511224

Nicholls v Coroner for City of Liverpool: Admn 8 Nov 2001

As the deceased was arrested he swallowed something. He was examined by a doctor and denied that he had swallowed drugs, but his condition deteriorated and he died at hospital. The coroner refused to admit the evidence of a professor who was highly critical of the conduct of the doctor who had seen the deceased, and said that an antidote should have been prescribed. The coroner found insufficient evidence of neglect to leave that issue to the jury, and they returned a verdict of death by misadventure.
Held: The professor should have been called even though it might well have led to a further adjournment ‘measured in weeks or perhaps one to two months’. The coroner’s principal reason for refusing to call the professor was that his report was concerned on its face not with neglect applying the Jamieson test, but with medical negligence applying the Bolam test, ‘Notwithstanding Mr Burnett’s submission that neglect and negligence are two different ‘animals’, there is, in reality, no precise dividing line between ‘a gross failure to provide . . basic medical attention’ and a ‘failure to provide… medical attention’. The difference is bound to be one of degree, highly dependent on the facts of the particular case. . . . Standing back and looking at the facts of the present case, one starts with a death in custody. As the then Master of the Rolls said in Jamieson, such deaths rightly arouse acute public concern. Professor Redmond’s report stated that this death in custody was ‘entirely preventable’ by steps that could have been expected of any doctor acting to a reasonable standard. . . . Such a statement in respect of the death of a person in custody pointed to a need for the fullest investigation. The steps that Professor Redmond was suggesting would have been taken by any doctor acting to a reasonable standard were neither complex nor sophisticated. They amounted to doing no more than checking the patient’s respiratory rate and the arranging for it to be checked after about another hour, rather than simply leaving the patient until the next morning . . . So far as causation is concerned … in my judgment it is important not to read the Master of the Rolls words in Jamieson as though they were contained in an enactment, or to apply them in an over literal manner.’
Application for judicial review of coroner’s decision on behalf of child daughter of deceased. He had died in police custody having taken opiates. The coroner had refused an adjournment for the family to call expert evidence as to the proper treatment of such a patient.
Held: The coroner’s reasons for not allowing the adjournment for the evidence did not stand up. As a death in police custody, it required a full public examination. That had not been done, and the verdict of misadventure was quashed and a fresh inquest was ordered.

Judges:

Rose LJ, Sullivan J

Citations:

[2001] EWHC Admin 922, [2001] EWHC 922 (Admin), [2001] Inquest LR 249, [2002] ACD 13

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

Coroners Act 1988 13

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

CitedLadd v Marshall CA 29-Nov-1954
Conditions for new evidence on appeal
At the trial, the wife of the appellant’s opponent said she had forgotten certain events. After the trial she began divorce proceedings, and informed the appellant that she now remembered. He sought either to appeal admitting fresh evidence, or for . .

Cited by:

CitedKhan, Regina (on the Application of) v HM Coroner for West Hertfordshire and Another Admn 7-Mar-2002
The deceased died in police custody. The coroner refused to leave to the jury possible verdicts of unlawful killing, or death contributed to by neglect, or breach of his right to life. He adjourned the hearing to allow this challenge.
Held: . .
CitedRegina on the Application of Mullholland v HM Coroner for St Pancras QBD 7-Nov-2003
The applicant sought to re-open a coroner’s inquest. The deceased had been drunk, slipped banged his head and fallen to the ground. Police and ambulance were called. The ambulance worker was not told he had been unconscious, and he was taken to the . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 06 September 2022; Ref: scu.432775

Legal Services Commission v Humberstone, Regina (On The Application of): CA 21 Dec 2010

Appeal against successful judicial review of refusal of legal aid for mother of deceased at inquest.
Held: ‘article 2 will be engaged in the much narrower range of cases where there is at least an arguable case that the state has been in breach of its substantive duty to protect life; in such cases the obligation is proactively to initiate a thorough investigation into the circumstances of the death.’

Judges:

Maurice Kay VP CA, Smith, Leveson LJJ

Citations:

[2010] EWCA Civ 1479, [2011] 1 WLR 1460, (2011) 118 BMLR 79, [2010] Inquest LR 221, [2011] Med LR 56, [2011] HRLR 12, [2011] ACD 51, [2011] UKHRR 8

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

Access to Justice Act 1999 6, European Convention on Human Rights 82

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

Appeal fromHumberstone, Regina (on The Application of) v Legal Services Commission Admn 13-Apr-2010
The claimant sought judicial review of the decision of the Defendant not to recommend that her application for public funding for representation at the inquest enquiring into the death of her son be granted. . .

Cited by:

CitedLetts, Regina (on The Application of) v The Lord Chancellor and Another Admn 20-Feb-2015
Application for judicial review concerning the criteria applied by the Legal Aid Agency to determine whether relatives of a deceased should be granted legal aid for representation at an inquest into a death which has arisen in circumstances which . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Legal Aid, Coroners, Human Rights

Updated: 31 August 2022; Ref: scu.427369

McCaughey and Quinn, Re Judicial Review: CANI 26 Mar 2010

The claimants challenged the mode of inquest sought to be carried out. They had been refused an undertaking that the inquest would comply with obligations under article 2.
Held: The appeal failed. McKerr remained binding on the court, even if this were inconsistent with the decision in Silih.

Citations:

[2010] NICA 13

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights 2

Jurisdiction:

Northern Ireland

Citing:

Appeal fromMcCaughey and Quinn, Re Judicial Review QBNI 23-Sep-2009
The claimants sought leave to apply for Judicial Review of a decision of the Coroner in relation to the Inquests yet to be held into the deaths in 1990 of Martin McCaughey and Dessie Grew at the hands of members of the security forces. The claimants . .
See AlsoMcCaughey and Another, Re Application for Judicial Review QBNI 20-Jan-2004
Application by the fathers of Martin McCaughey and Desmond Grew, who were killed by soldiers on 9 October 1990, for Judicial Review of the decisions of the Chief Constable and the Coroner concerning the disclosure of documents for the purposes of . .
See AlsoPolice Service of Northern Ireland v McCaughey and Another CANI 14-Jan-2005
. .

Cited by:

Appeal fromMcCaughey and Another, Re Application forJudicial Review SC 18-May-2011
The claimants sought a fuller inquest into deaths at the hands of the British Army in 1990 in Northern Ireland. On opening the inquest, the coroner had declined to undertake to hold a hearing compliant with article 2, and it had not made progress. . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 19 August 2022; Ref: scu.416614

D, Regina (on The Application of) v Inner South London Assistant Deputy Coroner: Admn 3 Dec 2008

The claimant sought to challenge the coroner’s decisions as to the available verdicts in the inquest into her son’s death, he having been shot by police officers at Stockwell.

Judges:

Silber J

Citations:

[2008] EWHC 3356 (Admin), [2008] Inquest LR 119

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Coroners

Updated: 17 August 2022; Ref: scu.408840

Humberstone, Regina (on The Application of) v Legal Services Commission: Admn 13 Apr 2010

The claimant sought judicial review of the decision of the Defendant not to recommend that her application for public funding for representation at the inquest enquiring into the death of her son be granted.

Judges:

Hickinbottom J

Citations:

[2010] EWHC 760 (Admin), [2010] ACD 51, [2010] Inquest LR 64

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

Access to Justice Act 1999 6

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

Appeal fromLegal Services Commission v Humberstone, Regina (On The Application of) CA 21-Dec-2010
Appeal against successful judicial review of refusal of legal aid for mother of deceased at inquest.
Held: ‘article 2 will be engaged in the much narrower range of cases where there is at least an arguable case that the state has been in . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners, Legal Aid

Updated: 17 August 2022; Ref: scu.408638

Tarariyeva v Russia: ECHR 14 Dec 2006

A complaint was made that the authorities had failed in their duty to protect a prisoner’s life. The authorities had him in custody for two years and knew of his health problems. He was not properly treated in the penal colony. When he had acute pain, he was diagnosed with a perforated ulcer and peritonitis and transferred to a civilian hospital. The surgery performed there was defective. The civilian hospital authorised his discharge to the prison hospital knowing of post-operative complications requiring further surgery, but withheld crucial details from the prison, which treated him as an ordinary post-operative patient rather than an emergency case. The further surgery was performed too late and the patient died.
Held: The complaint succeeded. The Court examined the individual operational failings of the health care given to prisoners, and not simply whether there were proper systems in place.
The court discussed the general principles applicable to the protection of the right to life: ‘The Court reiterates that . . art.2 . . requires the state not only to refrain from the ‘intentional’ taking of life, but also to take appropriate steps to safeguard the lives of those within its jurisdiction. In the context of prisoners, the Court has already emphasised in previous cases that persons in custody are in a vulnerable position and that the authorities are under a duty to protect them. It is incumbent on the state to account for any injuries suffered in custody, which obligation is particularly stringent where the individual dies.
Those obligations apply in the public-health sphere too. The positive obligations require states to make regulations compelling hospitals, whether private or public, to adopt appropriate measures for the protection of patients’ lives. They also require an effective independent judicial system to be set up so that the cause of death of patients in the care of the medical profession, whether in the public or the private sector, and those responsible made accountable. Furthermore, where a hospital is a public institution, the acts and omissions of its medical staff are capable of engaging the responsibility of the respondent State under the Convention.’

Citations:

4353/03, [2006] ECHR 1096, [2007] Prison LR 270, [2008] Inquest LR 209, (2009) 48 EHRR 26

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights

Jurisdiction:

Human Rights

Cited by:

CitedSavage v South Essex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (MIND intervening) HL 10-Dec-2008
The deceased had committed suicide on escaping from a mental hospital. The Trust appealed against a refusal to strike out the claim that that they had been negligent in having inadequate security.
Held: The Trust’s appeal failed. The fact that . .
CitedTyrrell v HM Senior Coroner County Durham and Darlington and Another Admn 26-Jul-2016
The court was aked what article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights requires of a coroner when a serving prisoner dies of natural causes.
Held: The reuest for judicial review failed. Mr Tyrrell’s death was, from the outset, one which . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Human Rights, Prisons, Coroners

Updated: 07 August 2022; Ref: scu.248183

McCaughey and Quinn, Re Judicial Review: QBNI 23 Sep 2009

The claimants sought leave to apply for Judicial Review of a decision of the Coroner in relation to the Inquests yet to be held into the deaths in 1990 of Martin McCaughey and Dessie Grew at the hands of members of the security forces. The claimants had been refused an undertaking by the coroner that the inquest would be compliant with the requirements of Article 2.
Held: Review was refused. McKerr was binding, even if inconsistent with Silih. If Silih was to be extended to apply in the UK, it would be for a higher court to overrule McKerr.

Judges:

Weatherup J

Citations:

[2009] NIQB 77

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

Coroner’s (Practice and Procedure) Rules (Northern Ireland) 1963, European Convention on Human Rights 2

Jurisdiction:

Northern Ireland

Citing:

CitedIn re McKerr (Northern Ireland) HL 11-Mar-2004
The deceased had been shot by soldiers of the British Army whilst in a car in Northern Ireland. The car was alleged to have ‘run’ a checkpoint. The claimants said the investigation, now 20 years ago, had been inadequate. The claim was brought under . .
CitedSilih v Slovenia ECHR 9-Apr-2009
(Grand Chamber) Article 2 imposes, in certain circumstances, a freestanding obligation in relation to the investigation of a death which applied even where the death itself had occurred before the member state ratified the Convention.: ”The court . .

Cited by:

Appeal fromMcCaughey and Quinn, Re Judicial Review CANI 26-Mar-2010
The claimants challenged the mode of inquest sought to be carried out. They had been refused an undertaking that the inquest would comply with obligations under article 2.
Held: The appeal failed. McKerr remained binding on the court, even if . .
At first instanceMcCaughey and Another, Re Application forJudicial Review SC 18-May-2011
The claimants sought a fuller inquest into deaths at the hands of the British Army in 1990 in Northern Ireland. On opening the inquest, the coroner had declined to undertake to hold a hearing compliant with article 2, and it had not made progress. . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Coroners

Updated: 05 August 2022; Ref: scu.377873