IHRD-53
Response
Accepted
Legal Privilege Disclosure to Coroner
Recommendation
In the event of a Trust asserting entitlement to legal privilege in respect of an expert report or other document relevant to the proceedings of an inquest, it should inform the Coroner as to the existence and nature of the document for which privilege is claimed.
Published Evidence Summary
The following publicly available evidence relates to this recommendation:
The Department of Health NI's Implementation Programme updates (January 2024) indicate that guidance was issued regarding legal privilege assertions and disclosure obligations to the Coroner. This guidance ensures that if a Trust claims legal privilege for an expert report or document relevant to an inquest, it informs the Coroner of the document's existence and nature, and this action is considered completed.
How was this assessed?
Assessed by gemini-2.5-flash on 24 Mar 2026
Checked data held on this site (government responses, progress updates, independent evidence)
External sources searched: www.gov.uk, www.health-ni.gov.uk, www.legislation.gov.uk, hansard.parliament.uk
Jurisdiction
Northern Ireland
Response
Accepted
Response
Accepted
Accepted
HSC Trusts
01 Mar 2018
Guidance issued on legal privilege assertions and disclosure obligations to Coroner.
Source
Inquiry
Hyponatraemia Inquiry
Report
Report of the Inquiry into Hyponatraemia-related Deaths
31 Jan 2018
Responsible Bodies
HSC Trusts
Primary
Themes & Tags
Recommendation age
8.1 yrs
Last formal update
784 days ago