Naope v. Serenity Family Mortuary, Forest Lawn Memorial-Park Association, et al.
Plaintiff alleged the cemetery client was liable for misconduct for mortuary and funeral services for Plaintiff’s deceased son. Plaintiff alleged that the death certificate issued for her deceased son and the burial permit contained erroneous information, leading her to believe that her son’s remains were mishandled by Forest Lawn. Plaintiff also alleged that Forest Lawn had a duty to identify the remains of her son.
Forest Lawn moved for summary judgment on the grounds that there was no legal duty to prepare the death certificate, obtain the burial permit, and identify the remains. The Court granted summary judgment finding that Forest Lawn presented evidence that Forest Lawn had no legal duty pursuant to the cemetery contract or statute either to conduct mortuary and funeral services or to verify the identity of Plaintiff’s decedent.