March 2017

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Page A10 MARCH 2017 FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS S ec t i on A
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Financial Aid is available.
Duty of
Funeral Home
The Texas Court of Appeals Eastland decision in the case
of Nelson v. SCI Funeral Services, Inc., 2016WL 368437
(January 29, 2016) dealt with a novel issue of law related
to the duty of a funeral home to an adult child of a dece-
dent who had no contractual relationship with the funeral
home in connection with the funeral services provided for
the mother.
According to the facts stated in the opinion, Nelson’s
mother died unexpectedly in October 2007. At the time
of her death, she had two children, Nelson, an adult, and
a minor child. The mother’s adult siblings were aware that
Nelson resided in Arizona, but were unable to locate or
contact him. The mother’s adult siblings assumed the obli-
gation to dispose of her remains and they contracted with
the funeral home to have her remains cremated and sub-
sequently scattered in a local cemetery less than two days
after her death. The siblings requested the funeral home
to try to contact Nelson, but the funeral home was unsuc-
cessful.
Nelson subsequently filed the lawsuit against the funeral
home claiming the funeral home violated the Texas law
dealing with disposition of remains by acting without his
ingly can sue for mental anguish damages when acts
are performed on the remains without their consent;
2. Nelson clearly was the next of kin and in addition to
the common law right he had rights created by the
Texas statutory law; and
3. On that basis the Appeals Court held that the funer-
al home owed Nelson a duty because of the special
relationship and it was not necessary there be a con-
tractual relationship between them.
While this case is based on the Appeal Courts analysis
of Texas law, it does serve as a warning to be extra careful
when there is a family member with priority that has not
been consulted. This article is for the information of sub-
scribers and does not constitute legal advice about this
subject. All subscribers should accordingly consult with
their own attorney to make sure they are in compliance
with the laws in their state.
participation. No one disputed that Nelson clearly had prior-
ity under the law over the mother’s siblings.
Nelson sought mental anguish damages under several the-
ories of liability premised upon the funeral home’s alleged
violation of the applicable Texas law. Specifically, he assert-
ed causes of action based upon negligence per se, negligent
breach of a special relationship, and negligent mishandling of
a corpse. He also asserted a claim for gross negligence.
The funeral home moved for summary judgment. The fu-
neral home’s first argument was there was no evidence of a
contract relationship or special relationship between Nelson
and the funeral home. The second argument was that under
general Texas law Nelson could not recover for mental an-
guish damages on the basis of the alleged facts. Accordingly
the funeral home argued that as a matter of Texas law Nelson
could not recover under any of his claims. The lower court
agreed and held in the funeral home’s favor.
The lower court’s decision was appealed.The Appeals Court
stated in its analysis that it would consider the no evidence of
a special relationship claim first. The funeral home had relied
primarily on a another Texas case against an organ donor en-
tity denying a claim by relatives of a deceased person whose
eyes had been removed without consent on the basis the spe-
cial relationship allowing mental anguish claims involving a
human remains required there be a contractual relationship.
The Appeals Court reviewed the various applicable cases
and confirmed that absent a special relationship, Texas law
did not generally allow claims for mental anguish. It noted
that one area for special relationships was a limited number
of contracts dealing with preparing a corpse for burial. The
issue therefore was did Nelson’s claim fall within this special
category even when there was no actual contract between the
funeral home and him.
The Appeals Court concluded there was and reversed and
remanded the case back to the lower court for the following
reasons:
1. Under Texas common law the next of kin have the right
to direct the burial (a quasi-property right) and accord-
Harvey I. Lapin, P.C., is a member of the Illinois Bar and Florida Bar. He
is a member of the faculty at the John Marshall Law School in Chicago
and is presently teaching the subject of Tax Exempt Organizations. He is
also associated with Florida-based law firm Sachs, Sax & Caplan, leading
the firm’s Funeral, Cemetery and Cremation Practice Group.
He has written numerous articles on the subject of taxation, funeral
and cemetery law.
The subject discussed in this article and future articles resulted from
the questions from readers. The author is licensed to practice law in
Illinois, Florida and Wisconsin. He has been involved with legal mat-
ters related to the industry in almost every state and can be reached by
phone at 847-334-1983 or by email at .
By Atty. Harvey I. Lapin
Legal
Speak
Large lobby with vaulted ceiling.
The chapel seats 300 people.
In 1997, Ralph purchased Anderson
Funeral Home in Farmington, IL, which
was founded in 1936. It is now known as
Anderson-Sedgwick Funeral Home.
In 2010 Ralph purchased Endsley Fu-
neral Home in Bartonville, IL, which is
now Endsley-Sedgwick Funeral Home.
Frank and Tom Endsley founded the fu-
neral home in 1928.
For the new funeral home in Canton,
Ralph selected Keystone Funeral Home
Design Build of Waite Park, MN to com-
plete his vision. Keystone worked with
Ralph to come up with a facility that is
8,886 square feet, along with a 990 square
foot free standing drive under canopy. The
nearly 1,000 square foot lobby is well lit
with natural light and has a 16’ vaulted ceil-
ing. The chapel has seating for nearly 300
people along with a connecting lounge to be
used for funeral dinners and gatherings.
There is also a private retail center, business
office, prep room, and four-stall garage. The
facility also includes both a human and pet
crematory (Midwest Pet Cremations). The
building exterior is made of cultured stone,
E.F.I.S and metal roof. There are over 100
concrete parking stalls, along with an elec-
tronic sign to display announcements.
For more information, visit www.
or www.
.
Sedgwick Funeral Home opens New
Location in Canton, IL
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