Administration of justice

In conversation with the Chief Coroner for England and Wales

HHJ Mark Lucraft QC discusses his role, the work of a coroner and its demands, and the support available to Chartered Legal Executives interested in applying for coronial ofice.

About the author: His Honour Judge Mark Lucraft QC is the Chief Coroner of England and Wales. He was interviewed by Louise Turner FCILEx, membership development manager at CILEx.

See also 'Coronial work shadowing: observing a date in the life of a coroner' in this issue.

How did you come to be the Chief Coroner and what does your work entail?

I was appointed in October 2016. My practice at the Bar was mostly in serious and complex fraud, and then, as a judge from 2012, onwards mostly homicide.

I saw the post of Chief Coroner was being advertised to judges and decided to apply. The key requirement was to be a judge rather than having an inquest law background. The involvement in leadership, training and issuing guidance appealed to me. I also saw it as an opportunity to take on the great work done by His Honour Sir Peter Thornton QC and to develop it further.

The job has evolved since October 2016. The terror attacks in 2017 and the Grenfell Tower fire, as well as two key judicial review cases, have put the work of coroners into the minds of many more people (see R (Maughan) v Senior Coroner for Oxfordshire [2019] EWCA Civ 809 and R (Maguire) v HM’s Senior Coroner for Blackpool and Fylde [2019] EWHC 1232 (Admin)). There are few days now when an inquest somewhere in England and Wales does not feature in the news headlines.

The work is very varied. I have responsibility for the training of all coroners and coroners' oficers, and we have a two-day compulsory residential course for coroners and their oficers each year. Alongside this, we organise other training events. The training has evolved by becoming much more interactive; for example, coroners taking part in mock court proceedings and active participation in seminar groups is expected.

I have issued a number of pieces of new Chief Coroner Guidance: organ donation, prioritisation and post-mortems are three recent examples. There are many pastoral issues that arise, as well as queries about issues in individual inquests.

In the last 12 months, I have presided over the inquests into the deaths on Westminster Bridge in March 2017 and the deaths at London Bridge/Borough Market in June 2017. They were challenging hearings but - from the feedback from those involved - very important, and they have helped those who lost family members with the grieving process. Prevention of Future Deaths Reports have been issued following the inquest hearings. They are an opportunity to make sure that important lessons are learned, and improvements made for the future.¹Again, from the feedback so far, these reports and recommendations have been welcomed by the families.

What qualities and experience do you think a person applying to become a coroner needs to possess?

It is essential that the coroner process is focused on the families of those bereaved. Until the death of a relative or friend is referred to a coroner, most of us know very little about what happens with the coroner.

Many people are concerned as to whether there will need to be a post-mortem, when they will be able to arrange for a funeral or cremation, and what any inquest hearing may involve. In a very high percentage of cases, coroners and coroners’ oficers will be dealing directly with the family; lawyers are instructed in a very small proportion of cases.

For the coroner, it is very important to keep a cool head and to be approachable to those who come into contact with the coroner service. It is important to be able to explain what is going on clearly and compassionately.

Some deaths reported to the coroner will raise questions of whether the death is by suicide. These deaths need very sensitive handling. The law in this area of work has changed in recent times and, whereas the criminal standard of proof used to apply, subject to the Supreme Court hearing in the case of Maughan above, it is now the civil standard that applies.

Since 2013, CILEx members who are Fellows with five years’ post-qualifying experience may apply for coronial offce. What advice would you give to our members interested in applying to become a coroner?

If you think sitting as a coroner is something you would like to do, then the best thing to do is to go and shadow a coroner: go and watch them for a day or so and see what the job actually entails day by day. Most coroners in post are passionate about what they do and are normally happy to let people come and watch them at work.

If you have no exposure to inquest work, you may wish to see about acquiring some experience in this area of work. Does your firm have a department that deals with inquests? If so, see if you can spend some time in this department.

What is the application process to apply to become a coroner?

Vacancies for fee-paid posts as assistant coroners and salaried posts as area or senior coroners are advertised on local authority websites and on the website of the Coroners’ Society of England & Wales (CSEW).² The best place to look for posts is on the CSEW website as all posts can be seen in one place.

Applicants are expected to complete an application form for the post (sometimes this is an online process), and then those shortlisted are called for interview. The interview will seek to explore legal skills and knowledge. Most interviews also require the applicant to give a short presentation on a subject. Many lawyers will have transferrable skills, and so even if inquest work is not their main work will be able to demonstrate that they meet the necessary criteria.

Is there any training and support available to those considering applying to become a coroner?

For the last three years, we have run various workshops for those who are interested in becoming a coroner. There is one workshop for aspiring coroners, and another for those who sit as an assistant coroner and who are interested in appointment as a salaried coroner. There is a waiting list for attending these workshops, and the list is kept by my ofice. We have a course set for March 2020, but if that is full, we will keep a waiting list in case any of those booked are not able to attend.

Any final word(s) of encouragement or wisdom?

Persevere! Many people are interested in becoming a coroner, and you may need to apply for more than one post before you are successful. It is a very rewarding post, but if you do not succeed, at first, do try again.

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For more information about Prevention of Future Deaths reports please see: https://tinyurl.com/rqplxfs
Visit: https://www.coronersociety.org.uk/

Chartered Legal Executives as coroners

The Judicial Appointments Order 2008 SI No 2995 ('the 2008 Order') made under Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act (TCEA) 2007 s51(1) makes provision for suitably qualified FCILEx to be eligible for prescribed judicial offce. The intention of the 2008 Order was to remove barriers to judicial appointment and encourage greater diversity. The Order made FCILEx eligible for a range of judicial posts, such as deputy district judge and judge of the First-tier Tribunal, but not coronial appointment.

However, the Judicial Appointments (Amendment) Order 2013 SI No 3022 provides that FCILEx hold a relevant qualification in relation to the judicial-appointment eligibility condition under TCEA s50 and, on meeting the required qualification period (ie, five years), are eligible to be appointed as senior coroners, area coroners and assistant coroners under the Coroners and Justice Act 2009.

To find out more about becoming a coroner, visit: https://www.cilex.org.uk/about_cilex/about-cilex-lawyers/why-be-acilex-lawyer/cilex-coroners
To register your interest in becoming a coroner, e-mail: beajudge@cilex.org.uk