Administration of estates

It was settled law that there was no right of ownership in a dead body. However, there was a duty at common law to arrange for its proper disposal, which fell primarily on the personal representatives of the deceased. If there was no executor or administrator, the duty to bury a body fell residually on the local authority where the body was found. On settled law, where there was no executor, the question of the appointment of an administrator arose which concerned the power of the court to pass over prior claims to a grant of administration.