Bill to improve coronial system passes first reading

A Bill to make the coronial system quicker and more effective passed its first reading in Parliament today.

Justice Minister Amy Adams says the Coroners Amendment Bill focuses on improving the timeliness and efficiency of the coronial system and providing better support to families.

The Bill follows a targeted review of the Coroners Act 2006. The proposed reforms include changes to improve public safety, reduce unnecessary reporting of deaths that do not need to be looked into, and speed up the coronial process to make things easier on families. 

“The review found good progress had been made in improving the coronial system since the Coroners Act 2006 came into force,” says Ms Adams.

“However, discussions with coroners, families and others showed there are opportunities to speed up the coronial process and make it more effective.”

The Bill amends the Coroners Act 2006 to:

• improve the quality, consistency and timeliness of coronial investigations
• clarify the role of coroners in making recommendations to prevent future deaths, and the relationship with relevant agencies that can help develop robust, workable recommendations
• make better use of resources, for example by reducing duplication between coroners and other authorities that investigate deaths and  accidents.

“These changes will ensure that deaths can be investigated in a timely and efficient way so that lessons can be learned and addressed quickly, and bereaved families can move on with their lives,” says Ms Adams.

The Bill will also improve and clarify the law on what details can be made public about a suicide. The Government has accepted the Law Commission’s recommendations on suicide reporting, to revise current reporting restrictions to focus on the details most likely to cause harm if made public. 

The Bill has been referred to the Justice and Electoral Committee for consideration.