Joseph v Dunn

The application was brought by the father of an eight-year-old boy who died suddenly and unexpectedly. The mother of the child sought to prevent the funeral from going ahead, which had been organised by the father. The court was required to determine the right to control the body of the deceased and to arrange his funeral. The dispute arose because the deceased had been living with his father in the years preceding his death. The coroner had decided to release the body to the father for the purposes of the funeral. The court had to decide the legal issues concerning the right to arrange the funeral of a child where the parents are in dispute as to the appropriate course of action. The court considered the coroner's decision to release the body to the father and the circumstances of the deceased's living arrangements prior to his death. The court held that the father had the right to arrange the funeral of the deceased child. The court found that the decision of the coroner to release the body to the father was significant and that the deceased had been living with his father in the years before his death. The court held that these factors supported the father's right to control the body of the deceased and to proceed with the imminent funeral. The court refused the mother's application for an injunction to restrain the funeral. The court ordered that the father was to have control of the body and was permitted to proceed with the funeral.