Check with an estate planning attorney or the county office that administers probate proceedings (often called a Surrogate) in the area where the deceased person lived. Most regulations regarding estate planning issues are state-specific. Many states do not have a legal requirement to have an obituary printed in a local newspaper.
If someone decides that he or she doesn’t want a printed obituary, or if the deceased person’s survivors decide not to have one, there is no state law that …