INQUEST


Meaning of INQUEST in English

judicial inquiry by a group of persons appointed by a court. The most common type is the inquest set up to investigate a death apparently occasioned by unnatural means. Witnesses are examined, and a special jury returns a verdict on the cause of death. In England inquests are also required when there is loss or injury in a fire. The inquest is confined to common-law jurisdictions that have a coroner system. Although the European civil-law system has a long tradition of the use of medical evidence and professional witnesses in court, it has no procedure similar to the inquest. See also coroner's jury.

Britannica English vocabulary.      Английский словарь Британика.