Open consultation

Standard of proof for the short-form inquest conclusion of unlawful killing

• From: Ministry of Justice
• Published: 14 September 2026

Applies to England and Wales

Summary

Seeks views on whether it would be appropriate to consider changing the standard of proof for the short form inquest conclusion of unlawful killing from the civil to the criminal standard.

This consultation is being held on another website.

This consultation closes at
11:59pm on 7 December 2026

Consultation description

The Ministry of Justice is seeking views on whether it would be appropriate to consider a change to the standard of proof for the short-form inquest conclusion of unlawful killing from the civil standard (i.e. on the balance of probabilities) to the criminal standard (i.e. beyond reasonable doubt).

The consultation is aimed at anyone with a professional or personal interest in this issue, to inform our understanding of the ways in which the current framework is working and the implications of any potential change across the range of contexts in which the question of unlawful killing might arise at inquest in England and Wales.

Documents

Consultation on the standard of proof for the short-form inquest conclusion of unlawful killing

Ref: ISBN 978-1-5286-6131-7, CP 1673

HTML

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Consultation on the standard of proof for the short-form inquest conclusion of unlawful killing (PDF)

PDF, 738 KB, 35 pages

Consultation on the standard of proof for the short-form inquest conclusion of unlawful killing (Welsh language - Cymraeg)

Ref: CP 1673

PDF, 480 KB, 38 pages

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Published 14 September 2026