RS 883 - Liability; authorizing agent; funeral director, funeral establishment, and crematory authority; refusal to arrange or perform a cremation; refusal to release cremated human remains
A. Except for those representations made by a funeral director pursuant to R.S. 37:877(B)(1)(b)(ii), any person signing a cremation authorization form as an authorizing agent shall be personally and individually liable for all damage occasioned thereby and resulting therefrom. A crematory authority and a funeral director shall rely upon the representations of the authorizing agent in the cremation authorization form.
B. There shall be no liability for a funeral director, funeral establishment, or crematory authority that, pursuant to a crematory authorization, arranges a cremation, cremates human remains pursuant to such authorization, or releases or disposes of the cremated human remains pursuant to such authorization.
C. There shall be no liability for a funeral director, funeral establishment, or crematory authority in relying on information provided by the coroner or healthcare providers pursuant to R.S. 37:877(B)(1)(b)(iii) and R.S. 40:1271.2 or their failure to provide such information.
D. There shall be no liability for a funeral director, funeral establishment, or coroner for permitting an authorizing agent or designated representative thereof, or any interested party, to view human remains for the purpose of identification.
E. A crematory authority shall not be responsible or liable for the commingling of cremated human remains if it has received a written authorization pursuant to the provisions of R.S. 37:879(G).
F. A crematory authority or any other person in possession of cremated human remains for a period of sixty days from the date of cremation shall not be responsible or liable for the disposition of the cremated human remains if such remains have been disposed of in accordance with the provisions of R.S. 37:880(B).
G. A crematory authority shall not be responsible or liable for any valuables delivered to the crematory authority with human remains.
H. If a funeral director refuses to arrange a cremation or a crematory authority refuses to accept a body or to perform a cremation in accordance with R.S. 37:877(C), neither the funeral director nor the crematory authority shall be liable for refusing to accept a body or to perform a cremation.
I. If a funeral director, funeral establishment, or crematory authority refuses to release or dispose of cremated human remains in accordance with R.S. 37:880(A)(2), then such persons or entities shall not be liable for their refusal to release or dispose of cremated human remains.
Acts 2003, No. 1243, §2; Acts 2011, No. 16, §1; Acts 2018, No. 206, §3.