The role of coroner

The coroner is an independent judicial officer presiding over a court of record within the English judicial system. The office is one of the oldest known to English law and is usually dated to 1194.

The historical role of the coroner

The office was originally created to provide a local official whose primary duty was to protect the financial interest of the crown in criminal proceedings.

The coroner was referred to as the "keeper of the king's pleas".

Anyone who found a body whose death was thought to be sudden or unnatural was required to raise the "hue and cry" and to notify the coroner.

Failure to summon the coroner could result in individual or community fines.

Over the centuries the coroner's responsibilities changed until the coroners Act of 1887 consolidated their present role.

The present role of the coroner

The coroner has a duty to investigate the circumstances of sudden, unnatural or uncertified deaths that are reported to him.

They have to find out the medical cause of the death, if it is not known, and to enquire about the cause of it - if it was due to violence or was otherwise unnatural.

In addition the coroner is responsible for determining issues of treasure trove.

Who reports the death to the coroner

Deaths will normally be reported to the coroner by the police, a doctor or a Registrar of births and deaths.

This can happen when no doctor has treated the deceased during his or her last illness or when the death was sudden, unexpected or unnatural.

What happens once the death has been reported

Even where a death has been reported, the coroner may decide, after preliminary questioning, that death was quite natural and the investigation should go no further.

Where a death has been reported to the coroner the deceased will be moved to the mortuary at a local hospital.

The county council is responsible for removing the deceased from the place of death to the mortuary.

If you would like more information about these arrangements please contact the Registration and Coroners Manager on 01622 221003.

The deceased is now under the coroner's jurisdiction and will remain so until the coroner releases the body for the funeral arrangements to be made.

Post mortem

If the coroner decides that a medical examination of the deceased is required, a pathologist will carry out a post mortem that will take place at the local hospital.

If the post mortem shows the death to have been a natural one, there may be no need for an inquest, however, if the death is not due to a natural cause then the coroner will hold an inquest.

Inquests

An inquest is not a trial. It is a limited inquiry to find out who has died, and how, when and where they died. It is not the job of the coroner to blame anyone for the death, as a trial would do.

Most inquests are held without a jury. There are particular reasons when a jury will be called, including if the death occurred in prison, in police custody or if the death resulted from an incident at work.

In every inquest held with a jury, it is the jury, and not the coroner, which makes the final decision (this is called returning the verdict). Jurors are paid expenses and some money towards loss of earnings.

If the body is brought into or taken out of the country

The coroner must be notified in every case when a body is to be taken out of England and Wales, whether or not there has been an inquest.

When a body has been brought into England and Wales from another country the coroner may be able to give some help in finding the cause of death and may be required to hold an inquest.

Coroners in Kent

There are 4 coroners in Kent covering the county and Medway unitary council areas.

By agreement these coroners are appointed by the county council and both the county and Medway unitary councils meet the cost of the service.

Coroners are not local government officers but independent judicial officers - this means that no one else can tell them or direct them as to what they should do but they must follow the laws and regulations which apply.

For more information, please call 08458 247 400.