Body disposal in New South Wales

Certain procedures must be carried out in order to dispose of a human body in New South Wales. Disposal of bodies is dealt with in six pieces of New South Wales legislation.

The Human Tissue Act provides a definition of death and deals with organ donation
The Coroner's Act controls the [investigation of death]
The Anatomy Act regulates the donation of bodies to science
The Local Government Act controls burials
The Public Health Act and Regulation describe the logistics of preparing, transporting and disposing of bodies
The Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act deals with the certification of death.

Many of the legal requirements involve the regulation of funeral directors, but there is no legal impediment to people conducting all aspects of a funeral themselves. However, the system is built around funeral directors and it would be difficult to conduct a private funeral if potential obstacles in a particular local government area had not been sorted out prior to the death.

This account is only a summary and has been prepared for general information as a component of the Australian Museum's exhibition and website Death - the Last Taboo. The Australian Museum has no role in the management of body disposal in New South Wales. The Department of Health and the relevant acts must be consulted for the detailed legal requirements. We would welcome any assistance in improving this site and keeping it up to date.