Medical Inquests

Due to the increased public scrutiny of an inquests, the NHS and its staff are usually represented by a legal team employed to represent their interests in case of a claim. Coping with the stress and the emotional strain of the situation is difficult enough.

A medical inquest is far from easy, and if you have limited understanding of this complex legal process, the next steps can seem unclear.

Your appointed inquest lawyer will:

• Take control of the process and guide you through every step of the way liaising with the Coroner on your behalf.
• Provide you with regular updates, including timescales.
• Provide high quality expertise and legal representation at pre-inquest reviews and at the inquest itself.
• Highlight any failings or negligent acts which may have contributed to death.
• Take the time to speak to you about any concerns or worries you may have throughout the entirety of the process.

An ‘Article 2’ inquest is a highly-complex area because it investigates whether a sufficiently adequate framework of procedures has been followed, so far as is reasonable, to protect the deceased’s ‘right to life’.

An Article 2 inquest will ONLY be allowed by a Coroner if the death occurred in a state-run organisation (such as the NHS, a prison or police station) or as a result of care provided by the NHS and even then only in specific circumstances.

If we believe a healthcare provider’s procedures have contributed towards a person’s death, we can make representations to the Coroner for an Article 2 Inquest to be held.

By doing this, the scope of the Inquest’s role can be widened to question whether actions of the state or a particular NHS Trust have contributed to the death.

Under UK law, an inquest is called every time a person dies and the death cannot be explained. If the person had been under the care of the state (police, prison, mental health hospital, NHS, etc), this allows the facts of death to be independently established. It cannot take place until at least six weeks after the death.

It is the coroner’s job to find out the deceased’s identity, how they died, when and where it happened. During the inquest process, there is a possibility that valuable information which indicates that the standards of care fell short of what was reasonably expected by the patient may go unnoticed. If you are considering a clinical negligence claim, information obtained during an inquest might help you to pursue a successful case against the NHS or organisation responsible for healthcare providing healthcare.

Most inquests last for between one and five days, but because of their investigative nature the Coroner’s hearing may run for weeks. Usually this depends on the complexity of the case, the number of witnesses and the number of official ‘interested persons’ involved in the case. Once the Coroner has opened an inquest, their investigation MUST be full, fair and effective.

By law, a jury must be summoned;

• If the deceased died while in police custody or state detention and the death was violent and/or unnatural and/or of unknown cause.
• Where the death resulted from an act or omission of a police officer in the execution of their duty.
• Where the deceased died as a result of an accident, poisoning or disease which must be reported to a government department or inspector.