Coronial & Inquests
4. The Investigation Stage
Authors: Staff Legal Eagle
Firm / Chambers:
Last updated: 13 Jul 2015
- The coroner must investigate every reportable death.
- A ‘senior next of kin’ must be identified.
- This is the person who will make the major decisions regarding the deceased.
- State and territory legislation have a priority list for can be the senior next of kin.
- Generally the order of priority is spouse (husband, wife, partner), children (over 18), parents, siblings, the executor of the deceased’s will and then the deceased’s legal representatives.
- The family will be told if there is going to be a post-mortem (autopsy).
- The senior next of kin will be given 48 hours to object to the post-mortem.
- They must contact the police or coroner immediately if they wish to object.
- Generally an objection can be made on religious, cultural or personal grounds.
- The coroner will consider the objections and make a decision.
- The coroner may decide to order the post-mortem even of it has been objected to if they consider it to be in the public interest.
- The senior next of kin can appeal this decision to a higher court such as the Supreme Court.
- The coroner will then look at all the relevant material including:
- the deceased’s medical history;
- specialist reports;
- the post-mortem report;
- witness statements; and
- statements from the family.
- The coroner can make findings about the cause and circumstances of the death.
- These findings will be made public.
- Some findings may be conclusive and others may be left open.
- If a finding is left open it means the coroner could not determine certain aspects of the death.
- The coroner may call an inquest in cases that are complex and require further investigation or information.
- In some situations the coroner will consult the family of the deceased about whether to hold an inquest.
- The family of the deceased can also request that the coroner hold an inquest.
- In certain deaths such as a death that occurred in police custody a coroner must call an inquest to investigate the death.
- These processes vary in each state and territory. You should speak to a lawyer to find out how the law applies where you live. You can look in our Find a Lawyer directory that profiles lawyers from all over Australia.
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