Coroners Act 2003

The

Coroner's Court must hold an inquest to ascertain the cause or circumstances of the following events:

a death in custody;

if the State Coroner considers it necessary or desirable to do so, or the Attorney-General so directs—

any other reportable death or a death that would, but for section 3(2), have been a reportable death; or

the disappearance from any place of a person ordinarily resident in the

State; or

the disappearance from, or within, the State of any person; or

a fire or accident that causes injury to person or property; or

the death of a person (whether before or after the commencement of this subparagraph) who apparently died from natural causes, as certified by a medical practitioner, while—

subject to an order under section 32(1)(b) of the Guardianship and Administration Act 1993;

or

—

• subject to an inpatient treatment order under Part 5 of the Mental

Health Act 2009;

and

• held in a ward (however described) of a hospital or other facility that is an approved treatment centre under the Mental

Health Act 2009 where the whole of the ward is not set aside for the treatment of persons with a mental illness;

any other event if so required under some other Act.

However, if a person has been charged in criminal proceedings with causing the event that is, or is to be, the subject of an inquest, the Court may not commence or proceed further with the inquest until the criminal proceedings have been disposed of, withdrawn or permanently stayed.

An inquest may be held to ascertain the cause or circumstances of more than one event.

For the purposes of subsection (1)(a) and the definition of death in custody in section 3(1), the death or apparent death of a person (whether before or after the commencement of this subsection) from natural causes, as certified by a medical practitioner, while—

subject to an inpatient treatment order under Part 5 of the Mental

Health Act 2009;

and

held in a ward (however described) of a hospital or other facility that is an approved treatment centre under the Mental

Health Act 2009 where the whole of the ward is set aside for the treatment of persons with a mental illness, will be taken to be a death in custody.

Despite the definition of death in custody in section 3(1), for the purposes of subsection (1)(a), the death or apparent death of a person (whether before or after the commencement of this subsection) from natural causes, as certified by a medical practitioner, while—

subject to an order under section 32(1)(b) of the Guardianship and Administration Act 1993;

or

—

subject to an inpatient treatment order under Part 5 of the Mental

Health Act 2009;

and

held in a ward (however described) of a hospital or other facility that is an approved treatment centre under the Mental

Health Act 2009 where the whole of the ward is not set aside for the treatment of persons with a mental illness, will not be taken to be a death in custody.

In this section—

mental illness has the same meaning as in the Mental

Health Act 2009;

treatment has the same meaning as in the Mental

Health Act 2009.