An update to the Chief Coroner’s Bench Book: Release of the deceased’s body

New guidance for Coroners clarifies how rare but sensitive disputes over the release of a body should be resolved, placing the deceased’s wishes and the role of the executor at the centre of decision‑making.

In 2025, the Chief Coroner published Guidance for Coroners on the Bench (known as the ‘Bench Book’). You can read our blog about this here.

The release of the deceased’s body

The Coroners (Investigations) Regulations 2013 provide that a Coroner must release the body for burial or cremation as soon as is reasonably practicable, provided the Coroner no longer needs to retain the body for the purposes of their investigation.

The Coroner’s approach to disputes

On occasion, disputes arise between family members about the release of their relative’s body. The Bench Book has now been updated at Chapter 1 to provide guidance on how the Coroner should manage this situation. In summary:

1. The Coroner should clarify whether the deceased made a will. If so, their body should be released to the executor, to make arrangements in line with the deceased’s wishes.
2. If there is no will, the Coroner should clarify whether there are administrators of the deceased’s estate.
3. If there is no executor (because there is no will) and no administrators (because letters of administration have not yet been issued), the Coroner will need to decide who the body should be released to. This will usually be the person(s) who has highest priority to be the deceased’s administrator, as set out in The Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987 (i.e. the deceased’s spouse or civil partner, followed by the deceased’s children and issue, followed by the deceased’s parents, and so on).

In those rare cases where agreement cannot be reached, the Coroner will need to consider whether the order of priority in The Non-Contentious Probate Rules should be changed. Relevant factors may include consideration of the wishes of the deceased, the wishes of the family, and the location the deceased was most closely connected to. Most importantly, the deceased’s body should be disposed of with respect, decency and ideally without further delay.

Challenging the Coroner’s decision

This can be done by way of judicial review. There may also be a claim under the Senior Courts Act 1981.

Once the Coroner is aware of such a challenge, release of the body should not be authorised unless and until proceedings have concluded.

The Bench Book suggests that if no application has been made (or pre-action protocol letter received) within ten working days of the Coroner’s notification of a date of release, then the body should be released as determined by the Coro

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