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Shipley v. City of New York, 25 N.Y.3d 645, 37 N.E.3d 58, 16 N.Y.S.3d 1, 2015 N.Y. Slip Op. 04791

Facts

Jesse Shipley, a 17-year-old, died in a car accident, and an autopsy was performed by the New York City Medical Examiner's Office. The medical examiner, Dr. Stephen de Roux, obtained consent from Jesse's father to conduct the autopsy and removed Jesse's brain for further examination. The family was not informed that the brain had been retained, and they only learned of this retention months later when students on a field trip saw the specimen jar. The Shipleys filed a lawsuit claiming emotional distress due to the alleged violation of their right of sepulcher.

The medical examiner also removed and retained Jesse's entire brain for future examination by another doctor.

Issue

Whether a medical examiner has a mandated obligation to notify a decedent's next of kin that organs or tissues have been retained for further examination after an autopsy.

At issue on this appeal is whether a medical examiner has a mandated obligation—pursuant to the Public Health Law and a next of kin's common-law right to immediate possession of a decedent's body for preservation and burial (commonly known as the “right of sepulcher”)—to notify a decedent's next of kin that, although a decedent's body is available for burial, one or more organs and/or tissues have been retained for further examination and testing as part of an authorized autopsy.

Rule

The court ruled that the medical examiner's authority to conduct autopsies and retain organs is largely statutory, and there is no common-law or statutory duty requiring notification to the next of kin regarding retained organs.

The medical examiner clearly had the authority to conduct the autopsy in this instance.

Analysis

The court analyzed the statutory framework governing medical examiners and concluded that while the medical examiner had the authority to conduct the autopsy and retain organs, there was no specific legal requirement to notify the next of kin about the retention of organs. The court emphasized that the right of sepulcher pertains to the immediate possession of the body for burial, not the organs retained for examination.

The pertinent issue in this appeal, however, is whether, in the exercise of his statutory duties and obligations, the medical examiner nevertheless had a common-law and statutory duty to notify the Shipleys of his retention of certain organs and tissues, and therefore violated the Shipleys' common right of sepulcher and the Public Health Law when he failed to do so.

Conclusion

The Court of Appeals reversed the lower court's decision, ruling that the medical examiner was not legally obligated to inform the next of kin about the retention of the brain and other organs.

Accordingly, the order insofar as appealed from should be reversed, with costs, and the complaint dismissed in its entirety.

Who won?

The City of New York prevailed in the case because the court found that the medical examiner acted within his statutory authority and had no obligation to notify the next of kin about the retention of organs.

The City of New York prevailed in the case because the court found that the medical examiner acted within his statutory authority and had no obligation to notify the next of kin about the retention of organs.

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