Journalists remain the eyes and ears of the general public.

And by covering the courts they play an enormously valuable role in ensuring justice is not only done but seen to be done.

That is just as true of coroners' courts as it is of the crown court where serious criminals get their comeuppance and often lose their liberty.

Our presence at inquests, where a coroner or a jury decides who has died and how they died, is often applauded by those seeking to show that public bodies such as the police or hospitals have contributed to the death of their loved one through a failure of policy or practice.

Private businesses are held to account too.

Others hope that we are not sat on the press bench when a particularly tragic set of circumstances are being relayed. Many are furious at what they see as their private business making it into print or online.

Coroners' attitudes vary too, veering between those who value the concept of open justice and those who are obstructive and do their best to make life difficult for reporters.

With coroners being largely unaccountable for their rulings and their actions when dealing with the media other than by way of judicial review, the recent guidance issued by chief coroner Peter Thornton QC is to be warmly welcomed.

He places open justice at the forefront of the court's relationship with the press.

The chief coroner says details of inquests should be made public in advance and must include the date, time and place of the hearing as well as the name and aged of the deceased and the date and place of their death.

Some coroners have been known to play fast and loose with this principle in order to throw the press off of the scent and ensure they miss the hearing so are unable to report it.

He says, with limited exceptions, all inquests should be held in open in a courtroom accessible to the public.

Again, coroners have been known to deliberately hold hearings in venues where the press and public are excluded.

The chief coroner makes it clear first and last names should be given for the deceased, witnesses and interested persons.

Coroners have been known not reveal full names in an effort to make hearings impossible to report.

Under the guidance, journalists are able to tweet or live blog at hearings and can request access to documents. The coroner should approach such requests with open justice in mind.

The chief coroner also advises the holders of one of the most ancient offices in English law to give journalists the opportunity to make representations when making decisions that affect our interests such as reporting restrictions.

To see all of this in black and white is heartening even if it takes time to filter down and some coroners will do their very best to ignore it.

By building a constructive relationship or constantly applying the pressure and holding coroners to this guidance, we can continue to serve our audiences and inform them of stories that are most definitely in the public interest.

h/t to @JoshuaRozenberg