Appointment of coroners
Qualifications
The coroner is an independent judicial officer presiding
over a Court of Record within the English Judicial system
and discharges his duties in accordance with the Coroners
Act 1988, the Coroners Rules 1984, and other relevant
legislation. Although appointed and paid by local councils,
he is not a local government officer but holds office
under the Crown. Coroners are required under section
2 of the 1988 Act to have a general qualification within
the meaning of Section 71 of the Courts and Legal Services
Act 1990, or be a legally qualified medical practitioner
- in either case of not less than 5 years standing.
Alderman and councillors of local authorities are not
eligible for appointment as coroners in their county
or district, nor for 6 months after they cease to be
one.
Deputy and Assistant Deputy Coroners
Under section 6 of the Coroners Act 1988 a coroner
is required to appoint a suitably qualified person to
act as his deputy, but who shall only be permitted so
to act during the absence of the coroner due to illness
or any lawful cause, or in the event of his inability
to act in any case.
A coroner may also appoint a suitably qualified person
to act as Assistant Deputy Coroner, but who shall be
permitted so to act, in place of the Coroner and Deputy
Coroner, only when both such persons are absent or otherwise
unable to act as mentioned in the last paragraph.
Qualifications for Deputy and Assistant Deputy Coroners
are then same as for Coroners. In all cases, the approval
of the chairman of the relevant council is required.
Appointments may be revoked by the coroner, but do not
take affect until a successor has been appointed and
approved.
Terms of Appointment
The salary and pension of a coroner must be provided
in accordance with Schedule 1 of the 1988 Act. An annual
salary will be payed at a rate fixed by agreement between
the coroner and his or her relevant council, and will
be payed quarterly, unless some other agreement is made.
Salary structures for both full time and part time coroners
have been agreed within the Joint Negotiating Committee
for Coroners and details are attached.
Coroners appointed after 6 April 1978, and those who
elected to do so, are eligible to join the local government
superannuation scheme (see the Local Government Pension
Scheme Regulations 1995). Those coroners holding office
before 6 April 1978 and who did not elect to join the
local government superannuation scheme, may be paid
a pension in accordance with the provisions of paragraphs
2 and 3 of Schedule 1 to the 1988 Act.
A coroner is entitled to be reimbursed all payments
actually made of professional fees and allowances, items
included in the council's schedule of allowance expenses,
and all other expenses incurred in or about the holding
of an inquest. Unless authorised under the 1988 Act
or other legislation, a coroner may not accept any fee
or remuneration in connection with the discharge of
his duties.
A coroner will normally retire at the age of 70. He
may give notice of his intention earlier, but this will
not take affect until a successor is appointed.
In matters relating to the conduct of his duties, a
coroner is subject to the disciplinary supervision of
the Lord Chancellor. In practice, complaints against
coroners are normally considered initially by the Home
Secretary.
It is a matter for agreement between a coroner and
his council as to the amount of leave he may be permitted
to take in any year, but it is understood that the normal
practice is to allow 30 working days and for the Council
to make provision for the remuneration of the Deputy
or Assistant Deputy Coroner accordingly.
Duties
A coroner's duties are:
- to investigate the circumstances of the deaths of
all persons whose bodies are lying within his jurisdiction
where he has reason to believe that the death was
violent, unnatural or of unknown cause;
- to decide whether a post mortem examination is necessary
for the purpose of his investigation and, if so, to
give directions to an appropriate medical practitioner;
- to hold an inquest, with or without a jury, where
he is satisfied that he is required to do so in accordance
with section 8 of the 1988 Act;
- to notify the Registrar of Deaths of the findings
of the inquest, or, if no inquest is held, of the
fact that the death reported to him does not need
to be subject to an inquest;
- to pay the relevant fees and allowances to witnesses
and jurors, and to submit accounts to the relevant
council;
- to make annual returns to the Secretary of State
in connection with the inquests held and deaths he
has enquired into;
- to appoint a deputy coroner, and, if required, an
assistant deputy coroner.
Job Description
The coroner will be responsible personally for the
investigation of the circumstances of the deaths of
all persons whose bodies are lying within his area of
jurisdiction, in respect of which there are reasonable
grounds to suspect that they are of violent, unnatural
or unknown cause, irrespective of the place where the
death occurred or when the cause of death arose. Accordingly
a coroner may have responsibility for investigating
deaths which took place outside his jurisdiction and
even outside England and Wales.
Reports concerning such bodies lying within his jurisdiction
will generally be made by the police, hospital authorities,
Registrars of Births and Deaths and medical practitioners.
In each case, the coroner will need to consider the
particulars provided and to give directions for a post
mortem examination or such other form of investigation
as he may consider appropriate in the circumstances.
In the event of suspicion of criminal circumstances
surrounding the death, or other circumstances of a suspicious
nature, he is likely to need to consult with the senior
police officers concerned with the case regarding the
steps to be taken and to afford to the police such authority
as they may require, where acting on his behalf, to
conduct further investigation regarding the body.
As an investigator, it is the responsibility of the
coroner to ensure that the causes and circumstances
of all deaths reported are thoroughly investigated and
the full facts established. The coroner must direct
the enquiries to be made (in cases of crime, or suspected
crime, in liaison with the police) and provide the necessary
authority for several aspects of the enquiry, including
autopsy or toxicological investigation of the body.
If an inquest is required, the coroner should call
for a full file of statements obtained by the Police
or otherwise. He will then need to decide on the witnesses
to be called and the evidence to be adduced in the light
of the issues arising in the case as they appear from
the statements. He will need to prepare himself to lead
the public hearing of the evidence and ensure that all
relevant information is laid before the court.
Consideration must be given to whether the calling
of a jury is required by law or is otherwise desirable.
If so, the coroner must give appropriate instructions
and set a date, time and place for the hearing and ensure
suitable arrangements are made.
He will also be responsible for the compilation and
submission of proper accounts in respect of such payments
for the purposes of the local authority's treasurer
and the provision of satisfactory vouchers.
Save in so far as he may have clerical assistance,
a coroner may not delegate his functions or duties.
In connection with the efficient discharge of his duties,
the coroner will need to maintain liaison and satisfactory
working relationships with the police service, the local
authority, hospitals and emergency services. He will
also need to deal with all relevant correspondence concerning
these matters, representations and enquiries from interested
parties and their representatives, insurance companies,
government departments, Members of Parliament and others.
A coroner is personally responsible for every action
taken, discretion exercised or judgement made by him
in the course of his duties. In such matters he may
be liable to proceedings by way of judicial review which
may be instituted against him personally by any aggrieved
properly interested person or party in the Divisional
Court of the High Court of Justice.
Administratively, a coroner is responsible for the
provision, under personal signature, of certificates
of authority for disposal of the body by burial or cremation,
its export out of England to a foreign country, the
provision of authorisation for the registration of a
death, or for a medical practitioner's certificate to
be accepted for such purpose. In certain circumstances
the coroner may direct and provide authority for the
exhumation of a body.
A coroner is also likely to be responsible for the
organisation and maintenance of his office, if any,
comprising such staff as may be provided by the council
or police authority to deal with routine clerical duties
relating to the preparation of records and accounts
and the preparation of formal certificates to Registrars
of Births and Deaths, Crematorium Referees and for sundry
other official purposes.
A coroner is responsible for the maintenance of statutory
records of reported cases, the payment of fees and expenses
of the investigations within authorised limits, the
payment of the expenses of witnesses called to a hearing
and the summoning and payment of the expenses of those
called for jury service when necessary. In these matters
a coroner will be responsible for the application of
considerable sums of public money and will be personally
accountable for it. He will therefore need to exercise
discretion in incurring such expenses consistent with
the proper performance of the duties.
Personal Qualities
Candidates should possess a sound knowledge of all
aspects of the law, including particularly the law of
evidence, the administration of the legal system and
the procedures of the courts. It is desirable to have
had practical experience of the conduct of court proceedings
in an advocacy role, to be capable of handling sensitive
or emotionally highly charged situations, and to re-act
judicially in regard to all matters of conflict between
persons concerned with inquest proceedings.
In considering the suitability of any candidate for
appointment, regard should be had to the following issues:-
- Although the statutory qualification requirements
are satisfied by either legal or medical qualification
and practice, actual experience of the law in the courts
is essential. It is only by such practical experience
that an appointee is likely to be equipped with the
basic skills required to conduct and preside over proceedings
in court.
- Although medical issues constitute a substantial part
of the subject matter of cases referred to the coroner,
it may be more appropriate for them to be dealt with
in the form of expert advice, or evidence given on oath
in the court, rather than through the expertise of the
president of the court.
- The applicant, even with legal experience, will be
faced with a situation which is unique in the English
legal system. Instead of being adversarial in nature,
with opposing parties presenting their individual evidence
in support of their particular case, the proceedings
will be inquisitorial, by way of inquiry, with no opposing
parties.
- The coroner will need to conduct the proceedings
from the bench in an investigative role, rather than
as the recipient of evidence submitted by opposing parties.
The Coroner will require skill to preserve an even-handed
and impartial approach to the issues which arise and
so avoid being drawn in to any conflict between parties.
- The coroner's position is an isolated one. There
is no clerk or other assistant to provide advice. It
is vital that he or she should be aware of all the legal
considerations which may arise and should possess the
confidence and ability to make positive judgments which
can be justified at a later stage in the High Court
if necessary. For example, the corner may be confronted
by representatives of interested parties anxious to
pursue questions designed only to provide a basis for
a claim for damages in the future. This would not be
a proper matter to be pursued in the Coroner's Court
and the coroner would require firmness and tact in dealing
with such a situation, as well as a working knowledge
of the law involved.
- The most important personal qualities required
by a coroner are:-
- Clarity of thought in identifying the issues
which are defined by statute as proper for investigation
at an inquest.
- Compassion in dealing with attitudes of bitterness
or a desire for retribution, which often arise as
a consequence of, and part of, the grieving process.
The inquest is usually the only forum which relatives
can endeavour to use to give vent to such feelings.
- Commitment to serving the public and a willingness
(often at personal inconvenience) to try to meet the
particular wishes of bereaved relatives and others
(including the special religious views of ethnic groups)
in the administration of the office and performance
of the executive functions.
- Ability to provide counsel and show compassion
to the bereaved and to establish and maintain harmonious
working relationships with members of the medical
profession (including pathologists), senior police
officers, funeral directors, mortuary staff, hospital
administrators, registrars of births and deaths, the
media, Members of Parliament, government inspectors
and the local authority.
- The ability to calm situations of tension which
may arise between involved parties; in particular
to reassure nervous witnesses and coax from them their
recollections of an incident which they have witnessed
but find difficulty in describing with clarity.
- The ability to remember the importance which
will be attached to the case by the bereaved family
notwithstanding the fact that it will be merely one
amongst many for the coroner.
- The coroner possesses very great power in requiring
information from individuals for the purpose of the
inquiry - including the power to penalise for failure
to comply with a summons. It must, nevertheless, be
exercised with a sense of restraint and moderation
and always in the proper interests of the public at
large.
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