Finally. The US Supreme Court’s refusal to hear an appeal from the state of Louisiana means it’s now the law: You don’t have to have a funeral directors license to sell coffins in the Bayou state. It’s a little bittersweet; we were used to watching the state’s undertaker’s regulatory board playing Don Quixote for years against a group of monks who wanted only to build and sell wood coffins. Guess it’s back to General Hospital for us.
From the Associated Press:
Benedictine monks have won the final round in their lawsuit to keep selling caskets from their monastery outside New Orleans. Their attorney, Darpana Sheth, calls it a great victory for St. Joseph Abbey and for entrepreneurs nationwide.
Sheth says she learned Tuesday that the U.S. Supreme Court won’t hear the Louisiana State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors’ appeal.A district judge and the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had found no reasonable grounds for a regulation that only state-licensed funeral directors may sell coffins in Louisiana.
The 5th Circuit was the third federal appeals court to rule against similar laws or regulations. The 10th Circuit ruled in favor of them.
The funeral board referred a request for comment to its attorney, who did not immediately return a call.
Sad trombone.
