A RETIRED Court of Appeal judge will preside over the inquest into the death of Dawn Sturgess, the BBC reports.

Dawn Sturgess died in hospital in Salisbury, Wiltshire, in July 2018.

Baroness Heather Hallett has been appointed to hear her inquest after judges ordered the coroner to reconsider its parameters last July.

Lady Hallett was coroner for the inquests of the 52 victims killed on 7 July 2005 in bombings in London.

Lawyers for Ms Sturgess' daughter argued successfully that the senior Wiltshire coroner David Ridley acted incorrectly in seeking to limit her inquest's scope.

Mr Ridley had said he would consider the actions of two Russian military officers who set out to kill Mr Skripal.

He had earlier ruled out investigating if other members of the Russian state were also responsible or where the poison had come from.

The Royal Courts of Justice, in London, where the case was heard. Image: N Chadwick

The Royal Courts of Justice, in London, where the case was heard. Image: N Chadwick

Michael Mansfield QC said the use of Novichok "put hundreds of members of the British public at risk and killed Ms Sturgess".

He said: "The issue of who was responsible for it is a matter of almost unparalleled public concern."

Lord Justice Bean and Mr Justice Lewis, who considered the case at a virtual High Court hearing, said David Ridley, the senior coroner for Wiltshire, had wrongly narrowed what issues he would consider.

They said that although a coroner cannot conclude who was criminally responsible for Ms Sturgess' death, it could still be legally linked back to the Russian state, but that international law did not require him to investigate the actions of a foreign state.

A pre-inquest review ahead of Ms Sturgess' inquest is due to be heard by Lady Hallett at the Royal Courts of Justice on March 30.