A solicitor and former senior coroner has been told he will be prosecuted and appear before a tribunal. The Solicitors Regulation Authority said this week it has brought proceedings against Chinyere Inyama, who was coroner for West London for more than nine years before leaving in 2023.
The single charge against Inyama is that he provided inaccurate and/or misleading information to the Chief Coroner’s Office about the seriousness of allegations being made at the time against him.
The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal certified that there is a case to answer and Inyama will face a future hearing. The allegation is as yet unproven.
In February 2023, the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office revealed that Inyama had been removed from office for misconduct. This decision was taken by the lord chancellor with the lord chief justice’s agreement.
The JCIO said it had received information which indicated Inyama may have misled the chief coroner about serious allegations regarding his conduct. Inyama had accepted he deliberately minimised the allegations and a disciplinary panel found he must have known he was obliged to give a full and accurate account.
The JCIO said Inyama’s conduct had shown a ‘serious lack of integrity and a profound lack of judgement’.
It was reported at the time that Inyama had previously been accused of bullying a member of the coronial staff. He had also previously faced calls by the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham to step down after leaving a sensitive document relating to a murdered schoolgirl on a train. He was given formal advice from the lord chancellor and lord chief justice for failing to tell the chief coroner he had misplaced the report.
According to the SRA register, Inyama was admitted as a solicitor in 1993 but does not currently hold a practising certificate. He is listed as working at Barking firm Inyama & Co Limited. His Linkedin profile states that as well as being a consultant solicitor he is also a qualified personal trainer and Boxercise coach.
