UKSC/2010/0101

In the matter of an application by Brigid McCaughey and another for Judicial Review (Northern Ireland)

Judgment given

Case summary
Judgment details
Appeal
Change log

Case summary

Case ID

UKSC/2010/0101

Parties

Appellant(s)

Brigid McCaughey and Letitia Quinn

Respondent(s)

Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland

Senior Coroner and Coroner for Northern Ireland

Issue

Whether there is an obligation to conduct an Article 2 ECHR-compliant inquest into deaths and subsequent investigations which occurred before the commencement of the Human Rights Act 1998; and whether the decision in Re McKerr should be overruled in the light of the Grand Chamber decision in Silih v Slovenia.

Facts

The Appellants are the next of kin of Martin McCaughey and Dessie Grew, who were shot and killed by members of the British army on 9 October 1990. No inquest has been held into their deaths, at least in part because of the continued refusal on the part of the police to provide full disclosure of documents to the coroner. The Appellants invited the Coroner to hold an inquest which was compliant with Article 2 ECHR. The Coroner indicated that he was bound by appellate authority that he could not do so. The preliminary view of the Coroner, on 1 December 2009, was that the scope of the inquest would cover the planning and control of the army operation.