Who is in charge of making the funeral arrangements? Is it the executor of the estate?
Being named executor, in and of itself, does not necessarily confer the right to control a person s funeral. The individual s spouse, or certain relatives, according to their blood relationship (consanguinity) to the decedent, have the legal right to determine the funeral arrangements, unless the decedent has left other written directions. (Being named in a will to handle the person s funeral could be considered other directions by the court.) However, since the executor controls the funds of an estate and the disbursement of those funds, the next-of-kin or the person appointed to make the funeral arrangements (if he is not the executor) may feel the need to confer with and allow the executor to contribute his concerns at the funeral arrangement conference.
