Parties with leave to appear at coronial hearings in the ACT are entitled to access documents surrounding expert reports on the same principles as apply in civil litigation, including letters of instruction, draft reports, working notes, and materials considered but not relied upon. The statutory provision freeing coroners from rules of evidence strengthens rather than weakens this entitlement, because the absence of evidentiary rules means greater caution should be shown in refusing access to material underlying expert opinions.
The full text is available to signed-in members, including the 3 later cases that cite this judgment.