New Zealand Legislation: Regulations
Regulations are laws made under Acts
(1) A Medical Referee must not permit any cremation unless a certificate in form AB of Schedule 1 has been given by a medical practitioner, and unless—
(a) the death has not been, and is not required to be, reported under the Coroners Act 2006 to a coroner, and a certificate in form B of Schedule 1 has been given by a medical practitioner who is required or permitted by section 46B or 46C(1) of the Burial and Cremation Act 1964 to give a doctor’s certificate (as defined in section 2(1) of that Act) for the death; or
(b) the death has been reported under the Coroners Act 2006 to a coroner, and a certificate in form C of Schedule 1 has been given by a coroner.
(2) The Medical Referee shall, in every case where he considers it necessary, requite to be delivered to him a statutory declaration or other evidence as to the identity of the deceased.
(3) The Medical Referee shall not act in any case in which he attended the deceased as a medical practitioner during the deceased's last illness, but this subclause shall not apply in the case of a person dying in a hospital carried on by a district health board established by or under section 19 of the New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act 2000, of which the Medical Referee is the Medical Superintendent, if the deceased has been attended also by another medical practitioner, whether a member of the hospital staff or not.
(4) The Medical Referee shall discharge the following further duties:
(a) He shall, before permitting a cremation, examine the application and certificates and ascertain that they are in conformity with these regulations and that the inquiry made by any person giving a certificate in the said form B has been adequate. The Medical Referee may make any inquiry with regard to the application and any certificate that he may think necessary:
(b) In any case in which a Coroner has not given a certificate in the said form C, the Medical Referee shall not permit the cremation unless he is satisfied that the fact and cause of death have been definitely ascertained:
(c) If it appears that death was due to poison, to violence, to any illegal operation, or to privation or neglect, or if there is any suspicious circumstance whatsoever, whether revealed in the certificates or otherwise coming to his knowledge, or if for any other reason the death has been or ought to be reported to a Coroner under the Coroners Act 2006 or any other enactment, he shall not permit the cremation until a certificate has been given in the said form C or the Coroner has otherwise notified the Medical Referee that he does not intend to open an inquiry.
(5) If in any case—
(a) To which paragraph (c) of subclause (4) of this regulation does not apply; or
(b) To which the said paragraph (c) applies and in which the Coroner has notified the Medical Referee that he does not intend to give a certificate in the said form C—
(c) [Revoked]
the Medical Referee is not satisfied that the cause of death has been definitely ascertained, the Medical Referee shall not permit the cremation unless a post-mortem examination has been made by a medical practitioner expert in pathology appointed by a crematorium authority, or, in case of emergency or in case of cremations taking place elsewhere than in an approved crematorium, by a medical practitioner expert in pathology appointed by the Medical Referee, and a certificate as to the cause of death has been given by such medical practitioner in form E in Schedule 1 to these regulations.
(6) The Medical Referee may, unless he attended the deceased as a medical practitioner during the deceased's last illness, give a certificate in the said form C, if he is a Coroner, or a certificate in the said form E, if he has made a post-mortem examination of the body pursuant to subclause (5) of this regulation.
(7) In the case of a person who has died in any place outside New Zealand, the Medical Referee may accept a declaration containing the particulars required by form A in Schedule 1 to these regulations, if it purports to have been made before any person having authority in that place to administer an oath or take a declaration, and he may accept certificates in the said form B or the said form E or certificates which, in his opinion, are substantially equivalent thereto, signed by any person shown to his satisfaction to possess qualifications substantially equivalent to those required by these regulations to be possessed by any person giving any such certificate in New Zealand.
(8) If the Medical Referee decides to permit any cremation he shall complete form F in Schedule 1 to these regulations in duplicate and shall send one copy to an attendant at the crematorium and retain the other copy with the application.
(9) Notwithstanding anything in these regulations a Medical Referee may refuse to permit a cremation without stating any reason.
Regulation 7(1): substituted, on 20 November 2008, by regulation 6(1) of the Cremation Amendment Regulations 2008 (SR 2008/410).
Subclause (1) was substituted, as from 1 November 1980, by regulation 4 Cremation Regulations 1973, Amendment No 1 (SR 1980/208).
Regulation 7(1)(a): amended, on 25 January 2009, by regulation 6(2) of the Cremation Amendment Regulations 2008 (SR 2008/410).
Regulation 7(1)(c): amended, on 1 October 2008, by section 130(3) of the Policing Act 2008 (2008 No 72).
Subclause (3) was amended, as from 1 January 2001, by section 111(2) New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act 2000 (2000 No 91) by substituting the words “a district health board established by or under section 19 of the New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act 2000”
for the words “the Crown or by a Hospital Board”
.
Regulation 7(4)(c): amended, on 20 November 2008, by regulation 6(3)(a) of the Cremation Amendment Regulations 2008 (SR 2008/410).
Regulation 7(4)(c): amended, on 20 November 2008, by regulation 6(3)(b) of the Cremation Amendment Regulations 2008 (SR 2008/410).
Regulation 7(4)(c): amended, on 20 November 2008, by regulation 6(3)(c) of the Cremation Amendment Regulations 2008 (SR 2008/410).
Regulation 7(5)(b): amended, on 20 November 2008, by regulation 6(4) of the Cremation Amendment Regulations 2008 (SR 2008/410).
Regulation 7(5)(c): revoked, on 20 November 2008, by regulation 6(5) of the Cremation Amendment Regulations 2008 (SR 2008/410).
Regulation 7(6): amended, on 20 November 2008, by regulation 6(6) of the Cremation Amendment Regulations 2008 (SR 2008/410).