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Anon @ 10.47 - no, because there is blatantly not a belief in any faith I am aware of that requires court cases to be dealt with on an urgent basis.

I am atheist. Strongly so. However, I recognise that others have very different views of the world, especially concerning death.

The judgment is simply saying that to ignore religion entirely (in this area), and hence to fetter discretion with a rigid policy, is not lawful.

Equally, it makes clear that a policy which automatically prioritised treatment, in favour of those with religious beliefs concerning quick burial, would also be unlawful.

What the judgment doesn't really deal with is how much importance should be given to someone's faith in any one particular instance. The judgment affirms that this is a matter for individual coroners, and that they have a margin of judgement. It appears most if not all other coroners in the country have managed the balance between religious beliefs and other factors without a need for such a rigid policy.