Coroners (Practice and Procedure) (Amendment) Rules (Northern Ireland) 2002

Statutory Rules of Northern Ireland

2002 No. 37

CORONERS

Coroners (Practice and Procedure) (Amendment) Rules (Northern Ireland) 2002

Made

8th February 2002

Coming into operation

11th February 2002

The Lord Chancellor in pursuance of section 36(1)(b) of the Coroners Act (Northern Ireland) 1959(1) and after consultation with the Lord Chief Justice, hereby makes the following Rules:

Citation and commencement

1.  These Rules may be cited as the Coroners (Practice and Procedure) (Amendment) Rules (Northern Ireland) 2002 and shall come into operation on 11th February 2002.

Amendment of the 1963 Rules

2.  The Coroners (Practice and Procedure) Rules (Northern Ireland) 1963(2) shall be amended by substituting for Rule 9 the following new Rule—

“9.— (1) No witness at an inquest shall be obliged to answer any question tending to incriminate himself or his spouse.

(2) Where it appears to the coroner that a witness has been asked such a question, the coroner shall inform the witness that he may refuse to answer.”.

Irvine of Lairg, C.

Dated 8th February 2002

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Rules.)

These Rules amend the Coroners (Practice and Procedure) Rules (Northern Ireland) 1963 to substitute a new Rule 9 which will allow a person suspected or charged with causing death to be compellable as a witness at the inquest into the death (this had been precluded under the previous Rule 9(2)). The new Rule 9 provides that a witness at an inquest may decline to answer any question tending to incriminate himself or his spouse.

(1)

1959 c. 15 (N.I.) as modified by S.I. 1973/2163 and as amended by 1978 c. 23

(2)

S.R. & O. (N.I.) 1963 No. 199 to which the most recent relevant amendments were made by S.R. 1980 No. 444