Henrietta Hill QC Published: 12th May 2016 The “duty” on the State to conduct an investigation into events of significant public concern or interest is not in fact a single duty , but incorporates some duties , and a wide range of powers , derived from common law , statutory and international law sources , which can often overlap in the same case. In this presentation we seek to provide an overview of these various legal sources , and some observations about how the principles and processes inter-relate. This paper focuses on domestic and international law duties and powers with respect to investigations; Adam Straw’s paper (here) addresses the investigative obligations generated by Articles 2 , 3 and 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights (“the ECHR”) , incorporated into domestic law (for now , at least!) via the Human Rights Act 1998 (“the HRA”). These Convention rights have an important role to play in triggering the duties and powers in issue , and in shaping the scope and outcome of the investigations that follow; and so our papers should be considered together for a full understanding of the legal position. THE LEGAL BASIS OF THE DUTY TO INVESTIGATE (1): You might be interested in… A fairer alternative to the Illegal Migration Bill