N.Y. Religious Corporations Law § 8-a: Reacquisition of a lot, plot or part thereof by a cemetery

§ 8-a. Reacquisition of a lot, plot or part thereof by a cemetery. A

religious cemetery corporation may, upon application and approval by a

supreme court, reacquire, resubdivide, and resell a lot, plot or part

thereof under the following circumstances:

(a)(i) If the records of the corporation demonstrate that the lot,

plot or part thereof was purchased more than seventy-five years prior to

the application of the corporation; and (ii) if no burials have been

made in the lot, plot or part thereof or all the bodies therein have

been lawfully removed; and (iii) if neither the owner or owners of the

lot, plot or part thereof nor any person having a credible claim to

ownership who has visited, made payments in respect of or engaged in any

other proprietary activities with respect to the lot, plot or part

thereof can be identified after a reasonable search conducted by the

religious cemetery corporation, it shall be conclusively presumed that

the owner or owners of the lot, plot or part thereof have abandoned

their burial rights. A reasonable search consists of a search of: (1)

all cemetery records to determine the name of the owner or owners of the

lot, plot or part thereof, their last known addresses and all

information available to the cemetery relating to any person buried in

the lot, plot or part thereof and the names and last known addresses of

any persons making inquiry about or visiting the lot, plot or part

thereof; (2) a search for the death certificates and the probated wills

of the owner or owners of the lot, plot or part thereof; (3) the posting

of notice by the cemetery at the entrance to the cemetery, at the site

of the lot, plot or part thereof to be reacquired and in the cemetery

office, if any, of its intention to declare the lot, plot or part

thereof abandoned; (4) the mailing of such notice certified mail with

return receipt requested to the owner or owners of the lot, plot or part

thereof and each person identified during the reasonable search at their

last known addresses; (5) publication of such notice once in each week

for three successive weeks, in two newspapers of regular commercial

circulation by subscription and/or newsstand sale, to be designated by

the county clerk of the county where the cemetery is located which in

his or her judgment, given the ethnic, religious, geographic or other

related demographic characteristics of the owner or owners of the lot,

plot or part thereof and each person identified through the reasonable

search and the predominant readership of such newspapers are best

calculated to inform the owner or owners of the lot, plot or part

thereof and each person identified through the reasonable search of any

application pursuant to the provisions of this section; and (6) the

preparation of an affidavit describing the steps taken by the religious

cemetery corporation to ascertain the identity of and to contact the

current owner or owners of the lot, plot or part thereof or next-of-kin

thereof or any other persons identified in the course of the reasonable

search who might have relevant information and the results of such

steps. After the filing with the supreme court of proof of compliance

with the above requirements in form and substance reasonably

satisfactory to such supreme court and upon approval by the supreme

court, the lot, plot or part thereof may be resold by the cemetery to

any party in compliance with the cemetery rules and regulations

provided, however, that any monument subsequently placed on such lot,

plot or part thereof shall conform to the general appearance of any

existing monuments in said section of lots, plots or parts thereof, if

any.

(b) If (i) the circumstances described in subdivision (a) of this

section exist except that one or more burials have been made in a lot,

and the last burial was made more than seventy-five years prior to the

application, (ii) the lot, plot or part thereof can be subdivided to

create new graves, (iii) the bodies have not been lawfully removed, and

(iv) the cemetery submits an application to the supreme court which

complies with the requirements set forth in subdivision (a) of this

section, it shall be conclusively presumed that the lot owner has

abandoned the right to make further burials in the lot, the lot may be

subdivided, and the resubdivided lot, plot or parts thereof which do not

contain the remains of the deceased persons may be resold by the

religious cemetery corporation as provided in this section. Nothing in

this section shall permit a religious cemetery corporation to declare

abandoned a lot, plot or part thereof, where such lot, plot or part

thereof was purchased for multiple depth burials and where one or more

burials has occurred or authorized a religious cemetery corporation to

remove a monument or other embellishment to facilitate the resale of

such lot, plot or part thereof.

(c) If the owner or owners of a lot, plot or part thereof can be

identified, the religious cemetery corporation, with the consent of the

owner or owners of the lot, plot or part thereof, the lot, plot or part

thereof may be resubdivided, and the resubdivided lot, plot or part

thereof which does not contain the remains of deceased persons may be

resold by the religious cemetery corporation, provided, however, if no

burial has been made in the lot, plot or part hereof, in the twenty-five

year period preceding such application, the owner of a lot, plot or part

thereof has notified his or her parents, spouse, issue, brothers,

sisters, grandparents, and grandchildren, if any, of the application to

the supreme court, and provided further, however, if a burial has been

made in this lot, plot or part thereof during such twenty-five year

period, the spouse and issue of such deceased person are also notified,

and provided further, in either case the owner of the lot, plot or part

thereof satisfies the supreme court that none of the persons notified

have agreed within forty-five days of notification to purchase the lot,

plot or part thereof at the price which the religious cemetery

corporation shall certify under penalty of law shall be the price at

which the lot, plot or part thereof shall be sold for after

reacquisition. Any persons notified pursuant to this subdivision by the

identified owner or owners of the lot, plot or part thereof must agree

to erect a monument of reasonable uniformity to the immediately

surrounding monuments as provided in subdivision (f) of this section

before the persons notified may enter into an agreement to purchase the

lot, plot or part thereof.

(d) Upon the sale of a lot, plot or part thereof reacquired by a

religious cemetery corporation under the provisions of subdivision (a),

(b), or (c) of this section, the net proceeds shall be placed in a trust

designated to provide future maintenance of the cemetery.

(e) If the owner of the lot, plot or part thereof is subsequently

identified, the religious cemetery corporation shall: (i) return all

unsold lots, plots or parts thereof if any, to the owner if so

requested; and (ii) with respect to any lots, plots or parts thereof

that have been sold pursuant to this section, at the option of the owner

of the lot, plot or part thereof, either (1) provide the owner, at no

cost to the owner, with a lot, plot or part thereof comparable to any

lot, plot or part thereof that was sold by the religious cemetery

corporation or (2) provide the owner with the proceeds from the sale of

the lot, plot or part thereof reacquired under this section with

interest thereon from the date of the sale at six percent per annum.

(f) Monuments to be erected on a lot, plot or part thereof, following

the resale of a lot, plot or part thereof, shall conform to the rules

and regulations or other requirements of the religious cemetery

corporation and shall conform to the size, style, and type of monuments

in the section of the cemetery where such resale occurs.

(g) No corporation shall utilize the reacquisition provisions of this

section in violation of such corporation's sectarian burial

requirements.