Understanding Inquests

The number of inquests in England & Wales is steadily increasing and last year there were nearly 400 inquests in Cumbria alone. Now, one of the county’s legal firms has held a free seminar for workers in the healthcare and voluntary sectors which focussed on inquests.

Burnetts in Carlisle hosted the session “Understanding Inquests” on Wednesday 21st November from 1pm – 5pm at the North Lakes Hotel, Penrith.

Ian Smith, President of the Coroners’ Society of England & Wales and HM Coroner for South & East Cumbria was one of the speakers while Burnetts’ solicitors Victoria Watson & Lynne Hall will be explaining the legal aspects of inquests as well as the issue of funding. Solicitor Ruth Keenleyside and healthcare professional Janet Sinclair-Pinder will be talking about the concerns of families.

Vicki Jagger is Head of Medical Law at Burnetts. She said, “This seminar was an opportunity for us to bring together like-minded people and create an opportunity to share up-to-date information. In these post-Shipman days, a growing number of deaths are being reported to the Coroner and at Burnetts we are advising many more clients who are looking for support and representation at inquests. We are very fortunate that Ian Smith and Janet Sinclair-Pinder kindly agreed to share their knowledge and experience.”

Delegates included workers from Primary Care Trusts, health-related charities and other advice organisations.

For further information visit www.burnetts.co.uk.

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Note to editor: Burnetts in Carlisle has Cumbria’s biggest team of dedicated Medical Law specialists. Head of Medical Law, Vicki Jagger is accredited by both the Solicitors Regulation Authority and the charity Action against Medical Accidents (AvMA).

Burnetts’ medical law team represents clients throughout the UK.