An inquest is a public court hearing held by the coroner.
The coroner will establish:
- who died
- how they died
- when they died
- where the death happened
It may be held with a jury, depending on the circumstances, such as where the death happened.
At the inquest, the coroner will hear from witnesses and consider other evidence such as post-mortem 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.
The purpose of the inquest is to discover the facts of the death, the coroner (or jury) cannot find anyone criminally responsible or liable under civil law for the death, these are matters for other courts.
The coroner can however write a report to help prevent future deaths. They will send this report to the organisations involved in the death for them to take action on.
In more complex cases or where there are many witnesses, there may be a pre-inquest review.
In a pre-inquest the coroner sets out:
- how the inquest will run
- the main issues that will be considered
- the documents that will be needed
- what evidence will be heard
- what witnesses and experts will be called
You may be asked to give evidence if you can give information about the death. You can still attend the inquest if you are not giving evidence.
A friend or family member can sit with you during the inquest, the Gwent Coroner’s Service are also assisted by the Coroners Court Support Service (CCSS) who are available on the day of the inquest and can attend with you to give you support.