It may be held with or without a jury, depending on the circumstances. At the inquest the coroner will hear from witnesses and consider other evidence such as postmortem or expert reports. Not all deaths which are investigated by a coroner need to have an inquest
An inquest is different from other types of court hearing because there is no prosecution or defence and only the coroner can decide what evidence to hear. As the purpose of the inquest is only to discover the facts of the death the coroner (or jury) cannot find anyone criminally responsible for the death.
Inquests in writing
On 28 June 2022, new provisions came into effect allowing inquests to be held in writing. For cases where an inquest in writing has been deemed suitable by the coroner and in agreement with Interested parties, these inquests do not take place in court.
An inquest in writing is an inquest without a hearing and where there are no attendees, and where the coroner only considers the documentary evidence.