Any heir at law or descendant of a deceased person interred in a previously unidentified graveyard or an abandoned family graveyard in which no body has been interred for 25 years may file a bill in equity in the circuit court of the county or city wherein the land is located for the purpose of having the remains interred in the graveyard removed to some more suitable repository. The owner of the land, any beneficiaries of any reservation of rights, and all other persons in interest, known or unknown, other than the plaintiffs shall be duly made defendants. If any of such parties are unknown, notice may be given by order of publication. Upon the case being properly matured for hearing, and proof being made of the propriety of the removal, the court may order the removal and the remains properly deposited in another place, at the expense of the petitioner. The removal and reinterment shall be done with due care and decency.
The bill may be filed and relief granted regardless of whether there has been a reservation of rights in the graveyard and regardless of whether the beneficiaries of any reservation of rights desire to waive their rights. In determining the question of removal, the court shall consider the historical significance of the graveyard and the wishes of the parties concerned so far as they are brought to its knowledge, including the desire of any beneficiaries of any reservation in rights, and shall exercise sound discretion in granting or refusing the relief prayed for.
1990, c. 562; 2019, c. 195.
Structure Code of Virginia
Title 57 - Religious and Charitable Matters; Cemeteries
§ 57-22. Conveyance of land to trustees or local governing body for cemetery use
§ 57-23. Appointment, change or removal of trustees
§ 57-24. Powers and duties of trustees
§ 57-24.1. Trustee for purpose of suit
§ 57-25. Condemnation of land for cemeteries
§ 57-26. Restrictions as to location of cemeteries and as to quantity of land
§ 57-27. City of Richmond may prohibit burials in certain cemeteries
§ 57-27.2. Correction of interment errors
§ 57-27.3. Authorization for interment
§ 57-28. Cities and counties may establish
§ 57-30. Funds from sale of lots and for perpetual upkeep
§ 57-32. Who may hold such property
§ 57-34. Amount to defray original cost not limited
§ 57-35. Trusteeship for administering funds for perpetual care
§ 57-35.36. Cemeteries owned by localities; good faith effort required prior to interment
§ 57-35.37. Sale of cemeteries owned by a locality; required notice to descendants of original owner
§ 57-36. Abandoned or previously unidentified graveyards may be condemned; removal of bodies
§ 57-37. Costs of suits, removal and reinterment; how surplus above costs disposed of
§ 57-38. Exemption from §§ 57-36 and 57-37
§ 57-39. Proceedings for removal of remains and sale of land vacated
§ 57-39.1. Improvement of abandoned and neglected graveyards
§ 57-39.1:1. Recovery of abandoned interment rights; procedure; rights of owner of record
§ 57-39.2. Reversion of unoccupied cemetery lots in cities and certain towns; rebuttable presumption
§ 57-39.3. Proceedings; determination of abandonment
§ 57-39.4. Notice to owner of record; publication
§ 57-39.5. Judicial determination; conveyance of title
§ 57-39.6. Sale of abandoned cemetery lot
§ 57-39.7. Applicability; abandonment determination limited in certain circumstances
§ 57-39.19. Application of §§ 54.1-2818.1 through 54.1-2818.3
§ 57-39.21. Duty to file declaration of land use restriction
§ 57-39.22. Certain representations unlawful; perpetual care trust fund required
§ 57-39.23. Change of address required from owner of burial right