Coroners Act 2003

This Act may be cited as the Coroners Act 2003.

The amendment of the District Court of Queensland Act 1967 in schedule 1 commences on 1 May 2003.

The remaining provisions commence on a day to be fixed by proclamation.

The object of this Act is to—

establish the position of the State Coroner; and

require the reporting of particular deaths; and

establish the procedures for investigations, including by holding inquests, by coroners into particular deaths; and

help to prevent deaths from similar causes happening in the future by allowing coroners at inquests to comment on matters connected with deaths, including matters related to—

public health or safety; or

the administration of justice; and

establish the Domestic and Family Violence Death Review and Advisory Board to review deaths related to domestic and family violence to prevent or reduce the likelihood of those deaths.

This Act binds all persons, including the State and, so far as the legislative power of the Parliament permits, the Commonwealth and the other States.

This Act is subject to the Commissions of Inquiry Act 1950, section 4A.

This Act does not limit or otherwise affect the functions or powers of—

a police officer or other person to investigate a death under another Act; or

a police officer to do something other than an investigation under this Act.

Example—A police officer helping a coroner to investigate a death may at the same time investigate whether the death was a homicide.

The dictionary in schedule 2 defines particular words used in this Act.

This section applies if—

a person becomes aware of a death that appears to be a reportable death; and

the person does not reasonably believe that someone else has already reported, or is reporting, the death under subsection (3).

Despite subsection (1)(b), a relevant service provider who becomes aware of a death in care as mentioned in section 9(1)(a) or (e) must report the death under subsection (3), regardless of whether someone else has reported or may report the death.

Note—Under section 9(3), a person’s death is a death in care even if the deceased person died somewhere other than the place where the deceased person ordinarily lived for the purposes of being in care.

The person must immediately report the death to—

if the death happened in the course of or as a result of police operations—the State Coroner or a Deputy State Coroner; or

if the death is a death in custody—the State Coroner or a Deputy State Coroner; or

otherwise—a police officer or coroner.

Maximum penalty—25 penalty units.

A police officer to whom a death is reported under this section must report the death to a coroner in writing.

However, if a death is reported to a police officer because a cause of death certificate has not been issued and is not likely to be issued, the officer need not report the death to a coroner until satisfied that the cause of death certificate is not likely to be issued.

A coroner to whom a death is reported must report the death to the State Coroner in writing.

Nothing in this section prevents a person from reporting a death in the way mentioned in subsection (3) if the person considers the death may be a reportable death.

In this section—relevant service provider means—

in relation to the death in care of a person mentioned in section 9(1)(a)—the provider of the residential service, or accommodation, mentioned in that section in which the person ordinarily lived for the purposes of being in care; or

in relation to the death in care of a person mentioned in section 9(1)(e)—the registered NDIS provider that was providing the services or supports mentioned in that section.

report includes report by email or fax.

A person’s death is a reportable death only if the death is a death to which subsection (2) and subsection (3) both apply.

A death is a reportable death if—

the death happened in Queensland; or

although the death happened outside Queensland—

the person’s body is in Queensland; or

at the time of death, the person ordinarily lived in Queensland; or

the person, at the time of death, was on a journey to or from somewhere in Queensland; or

the death was caused by an event that happened in Queensland.

A death is a reportable death if—

it is not known who the person is; or

the death was a violent or otherwise unnatural death; or

the death happened in suspicious circumstances; or

the death was a health care related death; or

a cause of death certificate has not been issued, and is not likely to be issued, for the person; or

the death was a death in care; or

the death was a death in custody; or

the death happened in the course of or as a result of police operations.Examples of police operations—

• a police motor vehicle pursuit for the purpose of apprehending a person

• an evacuation

However, a death that happened outside Queensland is not a reportable death if the death has been reported to a non-Queensland coroner.

Despite subsections (1) to (3), the death of a person who has self-administered, or been administered, a voluntary assisted dying substance under the Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2021 is not a reportable death.

For subsection (3)(b), an unnatural death includes the death of a person who dies at any time after receiving an injury that—

caused the death; or

contributed to the death and without which the person would not have died.

Examples—

• a person’s death resulting from injuries sustained by the person in a motor vehicle accident many months before the death

• a person’s death from pneumonia suffered after fracturing the person’s neck or femur

• a person’s death caused by a subdural haematoma not resulting from a bleeding disorder

A person’s death is a death in care if, when the person died—

the person had a disability mentioned in the Disability Services Act 2006, section 11, and—

was living in a level 3 accredited residential service; or

was receiving services providing accommodation to persons with a disability and operated, or wholly or partly funded, by the department in which the Disability Services Act 2006 is administered; or

was living in a residential service—

that is not a private dwelling or aged care facility; and

that is wholly or partly funded by the department in which the Hospital and Health Boards Act 2011 is administered or by a Hospital and Health Service under that Act, or at which the department or a Hospital and Health Service provides services; or

the person was, under the Forensic Disability Act 2011—

being taken to, or detained in, the forensic disability service as a forensic disability client; or

being taken to an authorised mental health service under section 113(2)(b) or (4) of that Act; or

undertaking community treatment while accompanied by a practitioner within the meaning of that Act; or

absent from the forensic disability service under a temporary absence approval while accompanied by a practitioner within the meaning of that Act; or

awaiting admission at an authorised mental health service under an order for the person’s transfer from the forensic disability service to the authorised mental health service; or

the person was—

being detained in an authorised mental health service as an involuntary patient under the Mental Health Act 2016; or

being detained in a public sector health service facility under an emergency examination authority under the Public Health Act 2005; or

being transported to or from an authorised mental health service under the Mental Health Act 2016; or

undertaking limited community treatment under the Mental Health Act 2016 while in the physical presence of a health service employee; or

temporarily absent from an authorised mental health service under an approval given under the Mental Health Act 2016, section 221 while in the physical presence of a health service employee; or

the person was under the guardianship of the chief executive under the Adoption Act 2009, section 57 or 65; or

the person was a child who was—

in the custody or guardianship of the chief executive (child safety) under the Child Protection Act 1999; or

placed in care under an assessment care agreement; or

the subject of a child protection order granting custody of the child to a person, other than a parent of the child, who is a member of the child’s family; or

the subject of a child protection order granting long-term guardianship of the child to—

a suitable person, other than a parent of the child, who is a member of the child’s family; or

another suitable person, other than a member of the child’s family, nominated by the chief executive; or

the person was a participant who was not living in a private dwelling or an aged care facility and who was receiving or entitled to receive, under the person’s participant’s plan, services or supports—

paid for wholly or partly from funding under the NDIS; and

provided by a registered NDIS provider that is registered under the NDIS Act, section 73E to provide a relevant class of supports; and

within the relevant class of supports.

Subsection (1)(aa) or (b) applies even if, immediately before the person was detained, the person was in the custody of the chief executive (corrective services) under the Corrective Services Act 2006.

Subsection (1) applies even if the person died somewhere other than the place where the person ordinarily lived for the purposes of being in care.

Example—A child placed in the care of an approved foster carer becomes ill and is taken to hospital. The child dies while in hospital. The child’s death is a death in care.

For subsection (1)(a)(iii)(A) and (e), the deceased person was living in a private dwelling if the dwelling was used, or used principally, as a separate residence for—

if a restrictive practice was used at the dwelling in relation to the deceased person under a chapter 5B approval in effect immediately before the person died—the deceased person and 1 or more of the deceased person’s relations; or

if specialist positive behaviour support was provided at the dwelling under the deceased person’s participant’s plan and the support involved the use of a restrictive practice—the deceased person and 1 or more of the deceased person’s relations; or

if specialist disability accommodation was provided at the dwelling under the deceased person’s participant’s plan—the deceased person and 1 or more of the deceased person’s relations; or

if paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) do not apply—the deceased person and 1 or more of the deceased person’s relations, or the deceased person only.

In this section—assessment care agreement means an assessment care agreement as defined under the Child Protection Act 1999.authorised mental health service means an authorised mental health service as defined under the Mental Health Act 2016.chapter 5B approval means an approval given under the Guardianship and Administration Act 2000, chapter 5B.child protection order means a child protection order as defined under the Child Protection Act 1999.forensic disability client means a forensic disability client as defined under the Forensic Disability Act 2011.forensic disability service means the forensic disability service as defined under the Forensic Disability Act 2011.level 3 accredited residential service means a residential service that has, or is required to apply for, a level 3 accreditation under the Residential Services (Accreditation) Act 2002.national disability insurance scheme rules means the National Disability Insurance Scheme rules made under the NDIS Act, section 209.NDIS means National Disability Insurance Scheme under the NDIS Act.NDIS Act means National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 (Cwlth).participant has the meaning given by the NDIS Act, section 9.participant’s plan, for a deceased person, means a plan for the person under the NDIS Act that was in effect under section 37 of that Act immediately before the person died.relation, of a deceased person, means—

a person who is related to the deceased person by blood, spousal relationship, adoption or a foster relationship; or

if the deceased person is an Aboriginal person—a person who, under Aboriginal tradition, is regarded as a relative of the deceased person; or

if the deceased person is a Torres Strait Islander—a person who, under Island custom, is regarded as a relative of the deceased person.

relevant class of supports means any of the following classes of supports under the NDIS Act—

high intensity daily personal activities;

assistance with daily life tasks in a group or shared living arrangement;

specialist positive behaviour support that involves the use of a restrictive practice;

specialist disability accommodation.

restrictive practice means—

a restrictive practice within the meaning of the Disability Services Act 2006, section 144; or

a regulated restrictive practice within the meaning of the national disability insurance scheme rules made for the NDIS Act, section 73H about conditions applying to registered NDIS providers in relation to the use of regulated restrictive practices.

specialist disability accommodation means SDA within the meaning of the national disability insurance scheme rules made for the NDIS Act, section 35 about the funding of SDA.specialist positive behaviour support has the same meaning as in the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 (Cwlth).

A person’s death is a death in custody if, when the person died, the person was—

in custody; or

escaping, or trying to escape, from custody; or

trying to avoid being put into custody.Example of paragraph (c)—a suspected bank robber who dies in a car crash while being pursued by police

In this section—custody means detention, whether or not by a police officer, under—

an arrest; or

the authority of a court order; or

the authority of an Act of the State, other than—

the Education (General Provisions) Act 2006; or

the Mental Health Act 2016; or

the Forensic Disability Act 2011; or

the authority of an Act of the Commonwealth.

A person’s death is a health care related death if, after the commencement, the person dies at any time after receiving health care that—

either—

caused or is likely to have caused the death; or

contributed to or is likely to have contributed to the death; and

immediately before receiving the health care, an independent person would not have reasonably expected that the health care would cause or contribute to the person’s death.

A person’s death is also a health care related death if, after the commencement, the person dies at any time after health care was sought for the person and the health care, or a particular type of health care, failed to be provided to the person and—

the failure either—

caused or is likely to have caused the death; or

contributed or is likely to have contributed to the death; and

when health care was sought, an independent person would not have reasonably expected that there would be a failure to provide health care, or the particular type of health care, that would cause or contribute to the person’s death.

For this section—

health care contributes to a person’s death if the person would not have died at the time of the person’s death if the health care had not been provided; and

a failure to provide health care contributes to a person’s death if the person would not have died at the time of the person’s death if the health care had been provided.

For this section, a reference to an independent person is a reference to an independent person appropriately qualified in the relevant area or areas of health care who has had regard to all relevant matters including, for example, the following—

the deceased person’s state of health as it was thought to be when the health care started or was sought;Example of a person’s state of health—an underlying disease, condition or injury and its natural progression

the clinically accepted range of risk associated with the health care;

the circumstances in which the health care was provided or sought.Example for paragraph (c)—It would be reasonably expected that a moribund elderly patient with other natural diseases would die following surgery for a ruptured aortic aneurysm.

In this section—commencement means the commencement of this section.health care means—

any health procedure; or

any care, treatment, advice, service or goods provided for or purportedly for the benefit of human health.

health procedure means a dental, medical, surgical or other health related procedure, including, for example, the administration of an anaesthetic, analgesic, sedative or other drug.

If the death of a child is reported to the State Coroner under section 7, the State Coroner must, within 30 days after receiving the report—

notify the family and child commissioner of the death; and

if a report about the death was given under section 7(4) by a police officer to a coroner—give the family and child commissioner a copy of the report unless the State Coroner considers that giving the report is likely to prejudice an investigation by a coroner or police officer.

Before giving the family and child commissioner a copy of a report under subsection (1)(b), the State Coroner must ensure that all information in the report that identifies anyone is obliterated.

However, the State Coroner need not obliterate information if the State Coroner reasonably believes the person’s identity is necessary for the family and child commissioner’s child death research functions.