In California, the person who has the legal right to control the disposition of the body must sign the authorization for cremation. This individual is typically the spouse or registered domestic partner of the deceased. If there is no spouse, or if their spouse is physically or legally unable to sign, the next of kin would be the subsequent person who can authorize a cremation—typically, the child(ren) of the deceased. If there are no living children, a surviving competent parent of sibling has the ability to authorize a cremation.