WHO OWNS A DEAD BODY?

Lake Wakatip Mail, Issue 2229, 7 October 1898, Page 1 (Supplement)

WHO OWNS A DEAD BODY?

It seems a rather curious arrangement that the moment your nearest relative dies he becotnes public property. According to the law a dead body belongs to no one, and is, therefore, under the protection of the public. The executors, however, have a right to the possession of it, and it is their duty to bury it. They can bury it in any manner they choose, too, although before dying the man may have given precise instructions as to what was to be done. But if he has willed that his body shall not be dissected at a post mortem examination, his desire must be carried out. On the other hand, if he has willed that his body shall be cut up, his nearest relative may object.

The dead man cannot own anything. If you stole his shroud or coffin, for instance, and were prosecuted, it would not do to describe the property as being the dead man's. The real owner is either the executor or the last living person in possession. When a body is buried it does not belong to the owner of the land. If you bought land containing an old graveyard, and wished to remove the bones and coffins, you could not do it. Neither could you dig up the burial ground for building parposes. And even if your own father was in his family grave you could not remove his body.