A jury made up of members of the royal household would be "inappropriate" for the inquest into Diana, Princess of Wales' death, Baroness Butler-Sloss has decided.
At the preliminary hearings at the High Court, Lady Butler-Sloss made the ruling after hearing legal argument.
The Queen's lawyer Sir John Nutting QC, argued that the public interest would be "best served" by choosing a panel of ordinary men and women.
A decision has not yet been taken as to whether a jury will be used for the high profile case.
Lady Butler-Sloss said she was able to make her decision, adding that it would be inappropriate to have a Royal Household jury.
Lawyers for Mohamed al Fayed, whose son, Dodi Fayed, was killed in the crash with the Princess, argued for a jury made up of ordinary members of the public.
Lady Butler-Sloss also indicated that she would hold a joint inquest for Diana and Dodi, saying it would be "unbelievably expensive" and exhausting, as well as upsetting for the families, to have separate inquests.
"I would be expecting, if I did it at all, to be operating two concurrent inquests," she said.
The most important point upon which she had to decide was whether to call a jury, she added.
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