HM Senior Coroner for Sefton Knowsley and St Helens v Michael Kay & Ors
[2024] EWHC 1366 (Admin)
HM Senior Coroner for the County of the East Riding of Yorkshire and the City of Hull v HM Assistant Coroner for the County of the East Riding of Yorkshire and the City of Hull
31 July 2024
[2024] EWHC 2007 (Admin)
High Court
A man disappeared in 2009. An inquest concluded with an 'open verdict' because his body wasn't found. Years later, his remains were discovered. A judge ordered a new inquest to investigate fully, using all the new information.
Key Facts
- •Michael Conboy (MC) disappeared on April 20, 2009.
- •An inquest was held in February 2019, resulting in an open conclusion due to the lack of a body.
- •In December 2022, skeletal remains were discovered and identified as MC's.
- •The Senior Coroner applied to quash the 2019 inquest and order a new one under section 13(1)(b) of the Coroner's Act 1988.
- •The application was supported by MC's family.
Legal Principles
Section 13(1)(b) of the Coroner's Act 1988 allows the High Court to quash an inquest and order a new one if it's necessary or desirable in the interests of justice due to new facts or evidence.
Coroner's Act 1988, Section 13(1)(b)
Factors to consider when deciding whether to quash an inquest include the possibility of a different conclusion, shortcomings in the original inquest, new evidence, time lapse since death, and whether a different verdict is likely.
R(Sutovic) v Northern District of Greater London Coroner [2006] EWHC 1095 (Admin)
The emergence of fresh evidence that may reasonably lead to a different conclusion about the cause of death usually makes a fresh inquest both desirable and necessary.
HM Attorney-General v HM Coroner of South Yorkshire; HM Coroner of West Yorkshire [2012] EWHC 3783 (Admin)
An open conclusion should be a conclusion of last resort.
R(Howlett) v HM Coroner for the County of Devon [2006] EWHC 2570 (Admin)
Outcomes
The 2019 inquest was quashed, and a fresh inquest was ordered.
The discovery of MC's remains and subsequent forensic evidence constituted significant new evidence that warranted a fresh inquest to fully investigate the circumstances of his death. The original inquest was not deemed flawed, but the new evidence made a fresh inquest necessary and desirable in the interests of justice.
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