Family Relations in the Light of Romanian Funeral Laws
Family Relations in the Light of Romanian Funeral Laws

Summary/Abstract: The passing away of loved ones is perhaps the most critical moment in everyone’s life. Such moments can bring families together, but they can also poison the relationships between relatives. Although concord should characterize these relations, not infrequently the reality proves us that the legislator has the ingrate mission to find solutions to resolve conflicts between the relatives of the deceased regarding the organization of the funeral. The issue is all the more complicated as not only secular legislation has its say, but also canon law in the sense that the lack of community of faith is an element that cannot be neglected especially in the case of denominational cemeteries. Analyzing how funerals are regulated we find that each actor – the state, the cults and the territorial administrative units – has a somewhat different vision on family relations, more precisely each one is more or less intrusive in the sphere of the private life. Virtually every regulation with an impact on funerals shows a certain pattern of personal and family relationships, essentially a behavior conditioning that is rewarded with the possibility of benefiting from certain funeral services. Thus, although everyone has the right to a decent funeral, the rules governing funerals form a kaleidoscope which, depending on the actual situation of the deceased, may lead to different results in the sense that the deceased is offered or denied certain options regarding the establishment of the place of burial and the organization of funeral services. Without trying to exhaust this vast topic, the present short study aims to highlight from a legal perspective the impact of the family typology on funerals arrangements starting mainly from the options offered to the deceased by the Romanian legislation.

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