Dec 07, 2025  
Catalog 2024-2025 
    
Catalog 2024-2025 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

FDM 148 Funeral Service Law and Compliance

3 credits
The subject area guidelines for Funeral Service Law are designed to introduce the student to rights, duties, and responsibilities of the funeral service practitioner and funeral establishment; including but not limited to: state and federal laws and regulations pertaining to funeral service including preneed; torts involving the dead  human body and the funeral service practitioner; wills, estates, probate and related 8 matters; cemeteries, crematories and issues related to final disposition; sources of law;  the legal status of the dead human body; the duty of burial, right to control funeral arrangements and final disposition and liability for funeral expenses; and the legal aspects  of being licensed to practice in funeral service (funeral director, embalmer, etc.).

Prerequisites: FDM 140  and FDM 141  

Corequisites: FDM 273  

Course Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the course the student will be able to:

  • Discuss the laws, rules, and regulations affecting funeral service
  • Identify legal relationships, rights, duties, and liabilities between the funeral service practitioner, the dead body, and the consumer 
  • Recognize the legal issues and importance of due diligence in funeral practices and compliance to help minimize exposure and/or liability 
  • Recognize the importance of completing proper documentation in funeral service
  • Distinguish situations when legal and other professional services are required for death planning and estate administration

College-Wide Learning Outcomes
This course teaches to the college-wide learning outcome of Information Literacy, the ability to recognize when information is needed, to choose the appropriate tools to locate the required information, and to effectively gather and evaluate the information.

Total Hours: 30 Theory (Lecture) Hours: 30