22Case management conferences

22 Case management conferences

(1)  A coroner may request some or all of the persons who have a sufficient interest in an investigation (and their representatives, if any) to attend a conference for the purpose of facilitating the conduct of the investigation or, if applicable, the rest of the investigation.

(2)  The request may be made orally or by means of a served notice (in a form determined by the coroner) but must in either case be accompanied by advice as to the time and place of the conference.

(3)  The coroner who makes the request need not be the coroner who is conducting the investigation.

(4)  The conference may be chaired by –

(a) the coroner who makes the request; or

(b) another coroner; or

(c) a coroner's associate or other person who has been specifically authorised by the Chief Magistrate to conduct the conference; or

(d) a coroner's associate or other person who has been generally authorised by the Chief Magistrate to conduct such conferences.

(5)  The chair of the conference may direct a person attending the conference to do any one or more of the following:

(a) identify any issues that the person expects to arise in the investigation;

(b) identify anybody who the person considers might be a potential witness in the investigation and indicate the probable nature of their evidence;

(c) produce any document or thing that the person considers might be relevant to the investigation;

(d) confer with any other person about the investigation;

(e) find out information or procure documents that might be relevant to the investigation;

(f) take any other reasonable action that it is within the person's power to take for the purpose of facilitating the investigation.

(6)  The chair of the conference may also do any one or more of the following:

(a) appoint the time and place for an inquest, if any;