Inquests must be held in public in accordance with the principle of open justice, so members of the public and journalists have the right to attend inquests and Press reports may appear.   The coroner cannot forbid journalists from attending an inquest however, in some cases the coroner can make order to prevent the identification of some witnesses, in particular children.   Press and media reports that are fair and accurate are unlikely to be actionable for defamation.  The only exception to this is inquests held in private for national security reasons.

Journalists must abide by the Editor’s Code of practice, upheld by the Independent Press Standards Organisation, which sets out the guidance for print journalists in the UK.  The Code, a copy of which is posted on the notice board outside the Coroner’s Court, has requirements on accuracy, privacy and discrimination.  It also has specific rules in cases involving grief and shock.  For instance publication in such circumstances must be handled sensitively and, when reporting suicide, care should be taken to avoid excessive detail about the method used.