2005 Arizona Revised Statutes - Revised Statutes §32-1365.02  Authorizing agents; consent for cremation, disinterment or embalming

A. Except as provided in section 32-1365.01 and in subsection E of this section, it is unlawful to cremate or disinter a dead human body without prior written consent of the authorizing agent.

B. Except as provided in section 32-1365.01, it is unlawful to embalm a dead human body without prior oral or written consent of the authorizing agent.

C. A funeral establishment shall create a written record of an oral consent given pursuant to this subsection that includes all of the following:

1. The name of the authorizing agent.

2. The relation of the authorizing agent to the deceased.

3. The date and time that consent was given.

4. The name of the person who obtained the consent.

5. Any other information required by the board.

D. In determining who the proper authorizing agent is, the following order of preference governs:

1. The surviving spouse.

2. A surviving adult child.

3. A surviving parent.

4. A surviving adult brother or sister.

5. For cremation or embalming, any other person or organization that is willing to assume legal and financial responsibility for the cremation or embalming. Preference under this paragraph shall be given in the following order:

(a) The executor of the decedent's estate.

(b) The guardian of the decedent at the time of death.

E. On the order of a court or a county medical examiner, or a person performing the duties of a county medical examiner, a dead human body shall be disinterred.

F. If none of the persons listed in subsection D is willing or financially capable of providing for the cremation or embalming of a dead human body, the public fiduciary or other person who is designated by the county in which a death occurs to handle funeral arrangements may order the cremation or embalming.

G. A funeral establishment, an employee or agent of a funeral establishment or a licensee shall exercise due diligence to obtain the consent required pursuant to this section from the proper authorizing agent.