swarb.co.uk

Hi folks.
My mother recently died and when my brother and I tried to see her at the funeral parlour we were denied.The funeral director had taken instructions from another brother who had told them not to allow us to see the body or even tell us about the funeral arrangements.
We have not spoken to this brother for a few years and he is paying for the funeral.
Do we have any legal rights to be able to see the body ?
Thanks:

Who is the Executor? (relationship to deceased, not his/her name(s)...)

You have no 'rights' as such in this matter. There is no property in a body. There is a contractual relationship between the funeral director and the person instructing him, and therefore broadly the funeral director does as he is contracted to do - to follow his clients' instructions.

As C says, start by asking who the executor is.

There have been many actions in the past over funeral arrangements:

http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/QB/2008/1387.html

Thanks.
Not sure if there is a will and not quite what i wanted to hear as it would be nice to say goodbye.

I agree with you. It's YOUR mother.

OK, so your brother has instructed the Funeral Director and has decided to be responsible for paying the Bill for the Funeral.

Your wish to "say goodbye" to your own Mother appears to be perfectly reasonable and I'd have another word with the FD, explain the position to him, and suggest to him that it would be reasonable for you to "say goodbye".

A funeral director has to do the best he can in the circumstances.

I do not see that "saying goodbye" actually interferes with the "funeral arrangements" for which your brother has taken it upon himself to be responsible.

I'd have a polite dialogue with the FD....... some of the FD's staff could be conveniently "unaware" of your brother's "instructions".....

Just my thoughts, anyway....

I sympathise greatly.

My Dad died in July and I went to see him with my Mum.

It was not a good experience. it did not look like him and indeed it was not him. It is better to remember the person how they were.

I think chop chop makes some good suggestions.

Thanks for those kind words, Mouse.

"Saying goodbye" and how one does it is very much a matter of personal choice.

I'm of your view as far as such "experience" is concerned. In my Father's case, he had suffered from Parkinsons and dementia for several years before he died so you can probably imagine my having no desire to see his body after death.... The sight of him "alive" in the final 3 years or so was upsetting enough.....

Morses for courses guys.

My father dies of Parkinsons come dementia although I would challenge that. It does not matter now. However I wanted to see him the morning after as I was not there when he passed away. The funeral directed advised me not to. I accepted his reason so waited a couple of days. Was it right or wrong.....I dont think so.

However if the FD said I cant because if my brother.........that is bad........DLS how you can respond like that is beyond me. It might be the legal thing but no wonder populus are turning against the legal trade.

I was going to say just that, but thought I'd try and assist the OP instead without responding to what I thought was a crassly inept comment by a solicitor.

I found it a shocking response, which also avoided the realities of the situation, and seemed to contradict the other statement which said: "There is no property in a body." That is absolutely true, and thus neither the brother nor the FD have any particular rights over the body or reasonable justification for refusing access to someone who, with just cause as a close relation, and subject to proving his/her identity, wants to see it.

It strikes me that the seeing of the body by the OP does not interfere with any "contractual relationship" between the other brother and the FD over "funeral arrangements" if the FD chooses to take that view.

Unless the brother has instructed the FD not to permit it.

This is a legal discussion forum. dls posted his view of the legal position. "It might be the legal thing" - indeed it is, but don't criticise dls for legal discussion!

You countered earlier with a suggestion of a way around the problem. If that doesn't work then, regrettably, Court may be the only route.

The problem is not the law or lawyers. It is human nature, in this case the brother. Chopper, do you remember posting recently about distrust following a family falling out? It appears you have probably had experience of the vagaries of human nature.

It is a legal forum, is it a surprise or affront that you get a legal answer from a solicitor

Words of sympathy without answering his question are not what he came here for. It is an awful position to be in, but it is not very uncommon in one way or another.

It is only once you understand the applicable legal structure that you can see what might have to work (cc's sensible suggestion) and what might not. That legal structure is not obvious.

It was my intention to assist not to cause offence.

Thanks, dls for that.