Selva acted for a consultant anaesthetist in an inquest into the death of a patient who had died immediately after surgery due to hypoxia - a misplaced Endo-Tracheal tube was suspected. Selva's client (and 3 other anaesthetists) had originally been charged with the criminal offence of gross negligence manslaughter. Selva had acted in those proceedings (which were halted after legal submissions made by Selva and the other defence advocates that there was insufficient evidence to justify the charge). At the subsequent inquest, which spanned 3 weeks, and which heard from a range of leading experts, the Coroner concluded that he could not be satisfied that the ET tube was misplaced from the outset and that he could not therefore attribute fatal hypoxia to such misplacement. Importantly for Selva's client, the Coroner concluded that the test for neglect could not possibily be satisfied. The death occurred on the Isle of Man. Selva was granted a temporary advocate's licence by the Isle of Man authorities to conduct this case on the island, on the basis of his special experience in the field of medical inquests.
Selva Ramasamy KC