Forensic pathology is the part of forensic medicine dealing with examination of deceased persons, and this is the focus of the present chapter. In the following, some general principles of the work in forensic pathology are presented. Although the legislation regarding forensic pathology differs between countries, a common principle is that in the investigation of a possible or suspected criminal death, a forensic pathologist is engaged through a formal request from the police or the prosecutor. The task of the forensic pathologist is then to assist in the investigation as a medical expert. This expert role continues throughout the process, including the court proceedings on request of the court and/or one of the parties. In many countries, major reliance is placed on the external examination of a body by a local medical officer while investigating the cause of death. While this is clearly a reasonable screening process, it is only that without autopsies, there will be many cases where it will not be possible to say why death occurred: it will not be possible to disentangle and distinguish, say, between natural and accidental deaths or suicides and homicides. Even with autopsies, some cases remain enigmatic. There must be acknowledgment that coming to correct conclusions about the cause and manner of death based simply on history and external examination is a process which is inherently and substantially flawed. Judicial decisions based on conclusions about the cause and manner of death reached without the benefit of an autopsy will have a high rate of error.