A FAMILY whose son died following plastic surgery in Colombia has been granted leave by the High Court to seek to quash an inquest verdict on the circumstances of his death.
Tom and Margaret Lawlor of Lucan, Co Dublin, had told the court their son, Pierre Christian (33), had died following the cosmetic surgery, which had taken place in September 2007.
Siobhán Phelan, counsel for the parents, told Mr Justice Gilligan that an open verdict had been returned on Mr Lawlor's death after a family application had been refused for an adjournment to facilitate investigation into the availability of medical records from Colombia.
She said the inquest had proceeded in circumstances where the medical records pertaining to the surgical procedure had not been available to the inquest. She said the coroner appeared to believe the records were unavailable.
Ms Phelan said the inquest had been told on the day that an application for the medical records had been made to the Colombian authorities by gardaí to follow up a criminal prosecution.
The gardaí had informed the inquest that the Director of Public Prosecutions had directed that a criminal prosecution would not be proceeded with. It was on this basis that the coroner came to the conclusion that the records would not be made available.
Ms Phelan said it had since transpired that the medical records were now available to the family.
Mr and Mrs Lawlor were seeking leave to ask the courts to quash the coroner's decision refusing an adjournment of the inquest, and leave to seek to quash the verdict.
Judge Gilligan said he was satisfied the parents had met the relevant legal threshold for him to grant leave to apply for an order of certiorari quashing the orders of the coroner. He adjourned the proceedings until the beginning of the new law term in October.
Mr Lawlor, of Belarmine Place, Stepaside, Co Dublin, died on September 3rd 2007 at the Centro Colomblade Cirugia Plastica in Bogota, Colombia, while undergoing cosmetic procedures.