A New Brunswick family waiting for a coroner’s inquest into the death of a loved one has spent another disappointing day in court.

Serena Perry, 22, was a psychiatric patient at the Saint John Regional Hospital when she was found dead in the facility’s amphitheatre on Feb. 14, 2012.

According to hospital records, Perry was found on her back, with a bathrobe tied loosely around her neck.

A coroner’s inquest examining the circumstances surrounding her death was scheduled to begin March 17, but there have been delays in the case and a new date has not been set.

Perry’s mother and sister left the courthouse on Tuesday after another round of legal arguments over the ground rules that will govern the coroner’s inquest.

“All this money is being spent on ridiculousness when it can be solved,” says Perry’s sister, Tasha King. “I don’t know. I just want some answers and I just wish that Serena was still here to be able to talk for herself.”

A ruling on Tuesday cleared the way for lawyers to be given standing and be allowed to ask questions at the inquest – a first for New Brunswick.

“Now we understand that the coroner will be appealing this decision and that will take time in itself,” says family lawyer John Gillis. “These are necessary steps in our legal system but for the family, it’s frustration.”

Health-care advocate Ivan Court says he sympathizes with the Perry family. The death of his own son was the subject of a coroner’s inquest into treatment at the hospital and, two decades later, Court says the Perry family deserves better.

“All the Perry family is seeking is the truth. They can’t wait two or three more years for the truth,” he says.

“The Perry family are simply saying, we want to move on with our lives. We want to know the cause of death of our daughter. We want to know what improvements can be made to make it safer for other people.”

At the end of Tuesday’s hearing, Justice Hugh MacLellan called Perry’s death a ‘tragic case’ and apologized to her family for the delays.

A hearing will be held next month at the New Brunswick Court of Appeal.

With files from CTV Atlantic's Mike Cameron