Coroner Reform Consultation

Coroners provide an important service to bereaved families and loved ones, often during challenging and upsetting times in their lives.

The purpose of this public consultation exercise is to seek views, observations and proposals on how the Coroner Service might be reformed into the future. The views of individuals who have engaged with the Coroner Service and stakeholder groups will be central to future reform of the Coroner Service. It is important that any future reform of the Service maintains the many positive elements of the Service while introducing improvements and enhancements where required.

Please read the public consultation paper before completing either questionnaire.

Responses to the consultation process will be captured through two separate questionnaires which are geared towards capturing the views and opinions of all interested parties depending upon the nature of their experience and interactions with the Coroner Service.

The focus of Consultation Part 1 is to gather insights from the lived experience of those who, having suffered the loss of a loved one, have interacted with the Coroner Service.

With this in mind, questions have been developed to capture past experiences and garner views and opinions of interactions with the Coroner Service by bereaved family and friends in terms of what worked well and whether there are elements which could be enhanced into the future.

Consultation Part 2 is targeted towards interested parties who are involved either directly or indirectly in supporting the delivery of the Coroner Service.

This questionnaire has been developed to garner views and opinions of stakeholders on specific issues as discussed in chapters 1 – 4 of the consultation document.

Certain individuals may wish to respond to both questionnaires.

As many individuals and organisations as possible are encouraged to participate in the consultation, by completing the questionnaire of most relevance to their circumstances, so that everyone can have their voice heard.

Consultation Part 1

To share insights and opinions from the lived experience of a bereaved person who has interacted with the Coroner Service:

Complete the online Consultation Part 1.

Consultation Part 2

To share insights and opinions garnered from an involvement directly / indirectly with supporting the delivery of the Coroner Service:

Complete the online Consultation Part 2.

We would like to thank you in advance for your feedback, which can be submitted until 5pm on Friday, 19 January 2024.

No submissions will be accepted after this date.

Any queries in respect of the consultation should be directed to coronerconsultation@justice.ie

Your views and opinions will help inform the Department of Justice’s programme of reform to address identified issues and drive innovative change across the Coroner Service. The public consultation process will be vital in identifying how the Coroner Service will operate in the future.

Publication of submissions and relevant provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2014

It is not intended to publish stakeholder submissions received in response to this consultation process.

Please note, as it falls within the Department of Justice’s consultation process, answers to this questionnaire may be subject to requests under the Freedom of Information Act 2014. This means that the department is obliged under the law to release this information if it is requested. However, if there is any personally identifiable information contained in the answers, this specific information will not be released.

General Data Protection Regulation

Any personal information volunteered to the Department of Justice will be treated with the highest standards of security and confidentiality, strictly in accordance with the Data Protection Acts 1988-2018.

The Minister for Justice, Helen McEntee TD, published a report on the Public Consultation on reform of the Coroner Service on 25 October 2024.

The report summarises the submissions received by respondents to the consultation process in relation to the structure of the Coroner Service, the functions carried out by Coroners and their staff, and crucially, how the service interacts with the bereaved.

The Government has also approved the drafting of Heads of Bill that will introduce important reforms to the Coroner Service to increase efficiencies and drive consistency in the delivery of this very important public service.