Coroners Act 2006, ss 19, 21A, 31
If the coroner decides to investigate the death, they’ll take legal possession of the body from the police.
The coroner may decide to get a pathologist (a medical specialist in diseases) to do a post-mortem examination of the body – also called an “autopsy” – to find out the cause of death. To help decide whether a post-mortem is necessary, the coroner may first get a pathologist to do a initial (“preliminary”) inspection of the body just by examining the body externally, or by using X-rays, MRIs and similar techniques, or both.
In a few cases the coroner may also decide that an inquest is needed – this is a legal hearing in the Coroner’s Court into the death and its cause.