Lessons From Fisk: Do Not Include Burial Instructions in Your Will

Lessons From Fisk: Do Not Include Burial Instructions in Your Will

By Melinda Gustafson Gervasi

December 1, 2023

The second episode in Season 1 of the Australian ABC show Fisk finds Helen in the middle of negotiations over the clause in a will that states the decedent's cremains shall be divided between his family and his much, much younger girlfriend.  The quirky factor is turned up high in this episode.

I want to avoid ever having to run a ratio analysis of the time a decedent spent with family members to calculate the percentage of ashes each party shall receive, as Helen did in the episode. Here are a few other reasons I avoid addressing funeral instructions in a will:

• In Wisconsin, the authority allowing an agent to make health care decisions for another person ends when the person who wrote the document dies;
• Wisconsin has a free, fill-in-law blank form called the Authorization for Final Disposition which allows a person to name a first person, back-up, and second back-up to be in charge of funeral and burial decisions along with space to state preferences, such as cremation or a religious service; and
• A will nominates a Personal Representative (called an Executor in many other states), but that person does not have legal authority to act until a will has been submitted to the probate court and the court empowers the Personal Representative.  This process could take days, or possibly weeks.  A will is simply not given authority fast enough for the modern burial industry.

Thanks for reading.  Remember a blog post is not legal advice, but a method to spark thought and discussion.  Please consult with an attorney in your state for advice specific to your situation.  Check in next week for a third lesson from this delightful Australian comedy, Fisk.