Coronial Law

New legislation is to be introduced to allow for the appointment of additional coroners in Dublin as well as additional temporary coroners across the State. Ministers yesterday approved the drafting of the Coroners Amendment Bill 2023, which aims to ease pressure on the Coroner Service while plans f

A wide-ranging consultation to inform the development of proposals for comprehensive reform of the Coroner Service in Ireland has been launched. The public consultation will run until 19 January 2024, after which proposals on a renewed coroner system, including a proposed plan as to how this will be

The Court of Appeal has dismissed the appeal of the parents of a newborn boy who died following a difficult birth. Delivering judgment for the Court of Appeal, Mr Justice Charles Meenan observed that despite the appellants’ contention that the verdict of natural causes was incorrect, “no

Medical evidence shows "no connection" between the Covid vaccination administered to a 14-year-old boy and his death 24 days later, a coroner has found. Patrick O'Connor, coroner for the district of Mayo, returned an open verdict after a three-day inquest into the death of Joseph McGinty in Septembe

Members of the public with experience of the coronial service have been invited to join a new advisory committee as part of a process of reform. A public consultation on the reform of the Coroner Service will take place later this year, seeking views on a number of aspects of the coronial service, i

Coronial data on unidentified human remains has been published by the Department of Justice for the first time in a bid to achieve breakthroughs in unsolved missing persons cases. There are around 856 unsolved missing persons cases live on the Garda Pulse system, many of which have remained unsolved

Eamon Harrington, partner at Comyn Kelleher Tobin (CKT), discusses a recent case which touched on the issue of disclosing a coroner's notes. A recent decision of the High Court, in which a challenge to an inquest outcome failed, raised an interesting side point. In Cummins v Cork City Coroner, the c

The High Court has dismissed a challenge by parents of a newborn baby who died shortly after his birth against a coroner’s verdict that the child died from natural causes. The parents identified a range of complaints, including that the decision was irrational, that insufficient time was provi

Proposals to allow coroners in Northern Ireland to hold inquests into deaths abroad have gone out for consultation. The consultation, which will run until 22 December 2022, seeks views on whether current legislation should be changed to allow an inquest to be held when a death has occurred abroad an

Special jury provisions will be introduced for the Stardust inquests through legislation now being drafted, the government has announced. The legislation will allow the Dublin coroner to seek the assistance of the Courts Service in selecting a jury using a process similar to that used in civil and c

Information to assist bereaved families involved with the inquest process has been published by the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission. The new Information Note on the Rights of Families at Inquest gives families a road-map of the existing law, standards and procedures that apply at inquests

Doireann O'Mahony BL, barrister and co-author of Medical Inquests (2022, Clarus Press), suggests priorities for the Oireachtas justice committee's forthcoming examination of the inquest process. The news that the Oireachtas justice committee will soon be holding hearings to address reforms to the in

Ireland's coronial system is "not fit for purpose" and root-and-branch reform is decades overdue, according to a damning new report. Professor Phil Scraton and Dr Gillian McNaull, both of Queen's University Belfast, have made more than 50 recommendations for reform following research based on interv

The last man sentenced to death in Northern Ireland has won a High Court battle over his right to access coroners' inquest files held in the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI). Applicant William Holden was given the death penalty following his conviction in 1973 of the murder of Privat

The final remaining provision of the Coroners (Amendment) Act 2019 has been brought into effect, completing a major overhaul of Ireland’s coronial law. Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan commenced all but one provision of the law last month following the landmark legislation being signed into l