The Coronial Division is committed to supporting research and initiatives that contribute to a greater understanding of domestic and family violence fatalities.
The Coronial Division has long advocated, and continues to advocate, to the Department of Justice and the Tasmanian Government for the establishment and ongoing funding of a specialist domestic and family violence death review unit within the Coroners Court. Such a unit would build on the existing work of the Tasmanian Suicide Register and expand the Court's capacity to undertake detailed coding, research, and qualitative analysis across a range of reportable deaths. There has not yet been an indication that funding will be forthcoming to enable the establishment of such a unit.
In continuing to advocate for such a unit, the Chief Coroner recognises the critical importance of evidence-based research and analysis in enabling coroners to fully perform their functions and in informing policy, practice, service delivery, and systems reform aimed at preventing domestic and family violence-related deaths.
The establishment of a specialist death review function would strengthen Tasmania's ability to identify systemic issues, recognise emerging trends, and inform prevention strategies designed to reduce avoidable deaths and improve community safety.
The Chief Coroner remains concerned that Tasmania is currently the only Australian jurisdiction without a dedicated domestic and family violence death review function. The absence of such a review mechanism limits opportunities for comprehensive examination of domestic and family violence fatalities and significantly limits the ongoing development of a complete national understanding of such deaths.
The Coronial Division will continue to advocate for the establishment of a specialist review capability to support prevention, improve system responses, and enhance the evidence base for policy development both within Tasmania and nationally.