The legislation governing the operation of fatal accident
inquiries (FAIs) in Scotland is to be reviewed for the first
time in over 30 years. Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill and
the Lord Advocate, Elish Angiolini have agreed that a review of
the Fatal Accident and Sudden Deaths Inquiry (Scotland) Act
1976 (the "1976 Act") should take place, and be lead
by Lord Cullen of Whitekirk. Lord Cullen presided over public
inquiries into the Piper Alpha disaster and the Dunblane school
massacre.
FAIs are inquiries held in the public interest into the
circumstances of deaths in the workplace, in custody, and those
which have caused serious public concern. The Procurator Fiscal
will determine whether (in the case of a sudden, suspicious,
accidental or unexplained death) it would be appropriate to
instruct a FAI. However, under the 1976 Act, an Inquiry is
mandatory where there has been a fatality in the workplace.
