Overview

• Ian Paterson, serving a 20-year sentence, has declined to participate in the inquests into the deaths of 62 of his former patients.
• Paterson's refusal is based on health concerns, inadequate legal representation, and insufficient facilities to prepare for the hearings.
• The coroner, Judge Richard Foster, has no power to grant Paterson legal funding and previously rejected his request to delay the inquests.
• Families of the deceased have expressed trauma and disappointment over Paterson's decision not to attend the inquests.
• Paterson was convicted in 2017 for performing unnecessary surgeries on over 1,000 patients, leading to the investigation into these deaths.