Family wins lawsuit against NHS trust over woman’s decomposed body

Emily Whelan was suspected to have been killed but investigation was hampered by state of corpse

The family of a woman whom they suspect was killed has won a lawsuit against a health trust that allowed her body to decompose to the point that experts were unable to rule out third-party involvement in the death in a first-of-its kind ruling.

In a judgment handed down on Friday, Judge Andrew Saffman concluded that Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS trust had breached human rights laws by failing to preserve Emily Whelan's body, and awarded the family damages.