California Health and Safety Code Section 7100 sets the order of people who have the legal right to control the disposition of a deceased person’s remains. The surviving spouse or registered domestic partner comes first, then adult children, then parents, then siblings, then any other next of kin or person who has acquired the right.1California Legislative Information. California Code HSC 7113 Whoever sits highest on that list, and is willing and able to act, decides whether the body is buried, cremated, or otherwise laid to rest, and signs the paperwork that lets a funeral home proceed.
The priority list matters because funeral directors cannot move forward without a clearly identified decision-maker. If the person at the top of the list is unreachable, declines, or runs out of time, authority shifts down the line in a defined order rather than by family consensus.
The Priority Order in Full
Section 7100 ranks the people entitled to control disposition in this sequence:
- The surviving competent spouse or registered domestic partner.
- The sole surviving competent adult child, or a majority of the surviving competent adult children.
- The surviving competent parent or parents.
- The sole surviving competent adult sibling, or a majority of the surviving competent adult siblings.
- Any other next of kin, or any other person who has acquired the right to control disposition.
Each tier is reached only when no one in the preceding tier is available, competent, or willing to act. “Competent” is doing work here: a person who lacks capacity cannot exercise the right, and authority moves on.
How a Written Directive Changes the Order
The default order is not absolute. A person can leave written instructions during their lifetime that override it. A will or another signed instrument naming an agent for disposition takes precedence over the statutory list.1California Legislative Information. California Code HSC 7113 If the decedent signed a valid directive naming a specific person, that person controls disposition even if a surviving spouse or child would otherwise rank first.
This is the practical reason to put disposition wishes in writing. Without a directive, family members with strained relationships, step-relatives, or estranged spouses may end up with authority the decedent would not have chosen.
Deadlines That Pass the Right to the Next Person
Section 7100 builds in time limits so that a funeral is not held up indefinitely by someone who cannot or will not decide. A surviving spouse generally has ten days to exercise or relinquish the right to control disposition. Other priority holders typically have seven days. If the person with authority does not act within that window, the right passes to the next eligible person on the list.
These deadlines usually start running when the funeral establishment notifies the authorized person that remains are ready for arrangements. For families stretched across states or dealing with international travel, the clock can run out faster than expected.
What the Person With Authority Actually Does
Holding the right under Section 7100 comes with specific responsibilities. The authorized person:
- Chooses the method of disposition (burial, cremation, scattering, or donation).
- Selects a final resting place.
- Coordinates with the funeral director.
- Signs the cremation authorization if the method is cremation.
- Applies for the disposition permit from the local registrar of births and deaths.
Nothing can happen before a death certificate is on file and a disposition permit has been issued. The attending physician must complete the medical certification promptly, and the death itself must be registered within eight days.2Justia. California Health and Safety Code 103050-103105 The disposition permit is a separate document that the registrar issues to the person controlling disposition, and it must identify where the remains will go.
If cremation is the chosen method, the signed authorization is what allows the crematory to proceed. A crematory will not accept remains without it, and the person who handles the final disposition of cremated remains must retain a signed acknowledgment on file for at least five years.3California Legislative Information. California Health and Safety Code 7054.7
When People of Equal Priority Disagree
Equal-tier disputes are common. Three adult children with different religious views on cremation, two parents who disagree about scattering versus burial, a group of siblings split on cost: Section 7100 anticipates this.
Within a tier, a majority rules. For adult children, the sole surviving adult child decides, or a majority of them if there are several. The same applies to siblings. When a majority cannot be reached, or when two people with equal standing simply cannot agree, any of them, or the funeral establishment holding the remains, can petition the superior court to resolve the dispute. The funeral home has standing to file because it needs a clear decision-maker before it can act, and it is not required to release remains to one claimant over another while a genuine dispute exists.
Court involvement adds time and expense, which is another argument for a written directive. A single named agent prevents a tie.
Anatomical Gifts and Section 7100
California’s version of the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act, in Health and Safety Code Sections 7150 through 7151.40, connects directly to the Section 7100 authority list. A person can donate their body or specific parts during their lifetime through a signed record, a driver’s license designation, or a will. After death, if the decedent did not make or refuse an anatomical gift, the person with authority over the remains under Section 7100 can authorize the donation.4California Legislative Information. California Health and Safety Code 7150.25
The donor’s own decision controls. An anatomical gift made by the donor can be amended or revoked only by the donor, through a later-executed document or by updating a donor registry.4California Legislative Information. California Health and Safety Code 7150.25 A surviving spouse or child cannot cancel a gift the decedent made. They can authorize a new one if the decedent left no instructions.
Families should know that donating a whole body means the receiving institution controls the timing of final disposition, which can take months or longer. The Section 7100 authority effectively hands off to the institution until it is finished with the research or educational purpose.
Acting Without Authority: What Can Go Wrong
A person who is not at the top of the Section 7100 list cannot direct a funeral home to act. Beyond the private problem of a disputed funeral, there are statutory consequences for mishandling remains:
- Burying, cremating, or scattering remains without first obtaining a death certificate and a disposition permit from the local registrar violates Health and Safety Code Section 103050.2Justia. California Health and Safety Code 103050-103105
- Depositing or disposing of human remains anywhere other than a cemetery without statutory authorization is a misdemeanor. Licensed funeral professionals and cemetery employees face enhanced penalties.5California Legislative Information. California Health and Safety Code 7054
- Removing human remains from a place of interment or storage with intent to sell or dissect, or with malice, is punishable by imprisonment under Penal Code Section 1170(h).6California Legislative Information. California Health and Safety Code 7051
Families of the deceased can also bring civil lawsuits for negligence or emotional distress caused by mishandling, and courts have awarded significant damages in those cases. A funeral establishment that acts on the instructions of someone who is not actually the authorized person under Section 7100 exposes itself to both regulatory discipline from the Cemetery and Funeral Bureau and private civil liability.
Planning Around Section 7100
The clearest way to control what happens to your body is to name an agent in a signed written directive while you are alive. The directive overrides the statutory priority order, prevents equal-tier disputes, and spares your family a court petition during the days when they are least equipped to handle one. If you want to donate your body or specific organs, make the gift yourself through a signed record, your driver’s license, or your will; a decision you make personally cannot be undone by a surviving relative.
If no directive exists, the people on the Section 7100 list should act quickly. The deadlines are short, the paperwork is specific, and the right moves on if the person at the top does not use it.