Findings and Legal Implications

Findings and Legal Implications

What findings can the Coroner or jury give at the end of an inquest, and what are the implications of these findings?

The Judiciary publishes on its website a list of the possible findings that the Coroner or jury may reach at the end of an inquest. Relevant findings include natural cause, accident, misadventure, lawful killing, unlawful killing, and an open verdict (meaning the evidence is insufficient to establish other findings). A full list is accessible here: https://www.judiciary.hk/en/court_services_facilities/cor.html.         

Such findings by the Coroner or jury is a statement on the cause of and circumstances connected with the death. It does not (and cannot) indicate any person is criminally guilty or civilly liable to pay compensation. Even a finding of ‘unlawful killing’ does not mean that someone is guilty of, say, murder. A full criminal trial is required to decide guilt. 

Can the Coroner or jury, at an inquest, point to any person as being legally responsible—either criminally or civilly—for the death? 
The Coroner and jury cannot, at an inquest, point to any particular person as being criminally (for example, guilty of murder) or civilly (for example, liable for negligence and compensation) responsible for the death. These matters can only be decided in separate criminal or civil trials. An inquest only answers the questions of the identity of the deceased, how, when and where the deceased died, and the cause of and circumstances connected with the death.

Can evidence and findings from an inquest be used in future civil or criminal proceedings?

Evidence from an inquest can be used in subsequent civil or criminal proceedings. For example, witness testimonies may help prosecutors prove someone committed a crime, or family members prove someone was negligent in a civil claim for compensation. 

However, the findings of the Coroner or jury (for example, that the deceased was killed unlawfully) itself does not automatically prove criminal guilt or civil liability. Separate civil or criminal proceedings are required to decide civil and criminal liability.