Human Tissue Act 1985

Subject to this Part, where it appears to a designated officer for a hospital, after making such inquiries as are reasonable in the circumstances, that a deceased person who has died in the hospital or whose dead body has been brought into the hospital – had, during his lifetime, expressed the wish for, or consented to, the removal after his death of tissue from his body – for the purpose of the transplantation of the tissue to the body of a living person; or for the purpose of the use of the tissue for other therapeutic, medical or scientific purposes; and had not withdrawn the wish or revoked the consent – the designated officer may, by instrument in writing, authorize the removal of tissue from the body of the deceased person for that purpose.

Subject to this Part, where, in relation to a deceased person who has died in a hospital or whose dead body has been brought to a hospital – the senior available next of kin of the deceased person has consented, in writing, to the removal of tissue from the body of the deceased person for any of the purposes referred to in subsection (1)(a); and it appears to a designated officer for that hospital, after making such inquiries as are reasonable in the circumstances, that – the designated officer is not authorized by subsection (1) to give an authority in respect of that person; the deceased person had not, during his lifetime, expressed an objection to the removal of tissue from his body; the consent referred to in paragraph (a) has not been revoked; and no objection has been made by any other next of kin (of the same or a higher order of the classes referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b) of the definition of senior available next of kin in section 3(1)) to the removal of tissue from the body of the deceased person for any purpose including the purpose, or any of the purposes, specified in that consent – the designated officer may, by instrument in writing, authorize the removal of tissue from the body of the deceased person for that purpose or those purposes.