Criminal Justice Modernisation and Abusive Domestic Behaviour Reviews (Scotland) Act 2025

Notification of potentially reviewable deaths

17 Notification of deaths

(1) A notifying body must—

(a) notify the review oversight committee in writing of any death of which the notifying body is aware which it believes is a reviewable death, and

(b) provide the Scottish Ministers with a copy of any such notification.

(2) The Scottish Ministers may make a written referral to the committee where they become aware of a death—

(a) which they believe is, or may be, a reviewable death, and

(b) in respect of which a copy of a notification has not been provided to them under subsection (1)(b).

(3) Where the Scottish Ministers make a referral under subsection (2), they must provide each notifying body with a copy of the referral.

(4) A person who gives a notification or makes a referral to the committee under this section must include as part of the notification or referral such information within the person’s possession or control as the person considers is likely to be of assistance to the committee for the purposes of its consideration under section 19(1).

(5) For the purposes of this section and sections 18, 19 and 21—

• “notifying body” means—

  (a)

  the chief constable of the Police Service of Scotland,

  (b)

  the Lord Advocate,

  (c)

  the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner,

• “reviewable death” means a death which is capable of being the subject of, or encompassed by, a domestic homicide or suicide review.

18 Revocation of notification

(1) A person who gives a notification or makes a referral of a death under section 17 (“the original notice”) may, at any time prior to a decision being made under section 19(1)(a) as to whether the death is reviewable, revoke the original notice.

(2) The power conferred by subsection (1)—

(a) may be exercised only where the person exercising it believes that the death to which the original notice relates is not a reviewable death, and

(b) is exercised by the person giving written notice to the review oversight committee, setting out the person’s reasons for that belief.

(3) Where a person gives a notice of revocation under subsection (1), the person must provide a copy of it—

(a) where the notice is given by a notifying body, to the Scottish Ministers,

(b) where the notice is given by the Scottish Ministers, to each notifying body.

(4) Where notice of a revocation is given under subsection (1)—

(a) the original notice to which it relates is to be treated for the purposes of this Part as never having been given, and

(b) consideration of the death under section 19 is to be discontinued, unless and to the extent that it is predicated on another notification or referral which has not been revoked.