Cause of death, post-mortems and inquests

The doctor who treated the person during their last illness will usually issue a medical certificate which shows the cause of death. In Portsmouth, the medical certificate is emailed directly to the Register Office by the doctor, the medical examiner or the coroner. A Register Office Team Member will call the nominated next of kin to arrange the registration appointment.

If the death has been reported to the coroner because it was violent, unnatural or of sudden and unknown cause, you will have to wait for the coroner to issue a medical certificate. You will be told if the coroner is involved.

A coroner is an experienced doctor or lawyer appointed by a local authority to determine the cause of deaths which appear to be violent, unnatural, or are sudden and unexplained. The coroner is completely independent of the local authority, the police and the Crown Prosecution Service. Their findings depend entirely on facts. If the cause of death remains in doubt after a post mortem, an inquest will be held.

The coroner and his team deal with all matters relating to post mortem’s and inquests. They also liaise with bereaved families, police, doctors and funeral directors.

HM Coroners’ Service in Hampshire can be found on the Hampshire authority website.

A post-mortem examination is a medical examination of a body carried out for the coroner by a pathologist of the coroner’s choice. The next-of-kin will be informed of the need for a post-mortem, unless this is not practicable or would unduly delay the examination. The consent of the next-of-kin is not required for a post-mortem, but they can be represented at the post-mortem examination by a doctor of their choice.

If the post-mortem reveals that the death was due to natural causes, the coroner will release the body. The death can then be registered and a death certificate issued, which means the funeral can take place.

In certain circumstances, it may be necessary to have a second post-mortem, further investigations, or the coroner will order an inquest. If this is the case, the coroner can issue an interim certificate of fact of death to help administer the estate. The death certificate will not be issued until the inquest is complete.

An inquest is an inquiry into who has died and how, when and where the death occurred. An inquest is not a trial; the coroner must not blame anyone for the death.

The release of the body and the funeral arrangements will be delayed if there is an inquest, in which case the coroner normally issues a burial order or cremation certificate after the post-mortem is completed.

An inquest is usually opened primarily to record that a death has occurred and to identify the dead person. It will then be adjourned until any police enquiries and the coroner’s investigations are completed.

A date for the resumed inquest is set when all investigations are complete. Everyone entitled to be notified is informed. Inquests are open to the public and journalists are usually present.

Coroners decide who should give evidence as a witness during an inquest. Anyone can offer to give evidence by informing the coroner. Anyone who believes a particular witness should be called, should inform the coroner. Witnesses can be compelled to attend.

If the death occurs in prison, in custody, at work or if further deaths may occur in similar circumstances, the inquest will be held with a jury. In these cases, the coroner decides matters of law and the jury decides the verdict. Possible verdicts include: natural causes, accident, suicide, unlawful or lawful killing, industrial disease, and open verdicts (where there is insufficient evidence for any other verdict).

The coroner may also report the death to any appropriate person or authority, if action is needed to prevent more deaths in similar circumstances.

When the inquest is completed, the coroner notifies the registrar, who can then issue the death certificate.