Melican

Plaintiffs Joseph Melican, Maureen Kennedy, and Robert Melican appeal from a judgment following the trial court’s order sustaining demurrers by the Regents of the University of California (Regents) to their breach of contract cause of action, and granting summary judgment on plaintiffs’ claims of negligence and negligent misrepresentation. Plaintiffs based their claims on the alleged mishandling of George Melican’s remains by the Willed Body Program (WBP) operated by the University of California, Irvine (UCI). Plaintiffs contend UCI breached its agreement to return Melican’s cremated remains (cremains) because the cremains they received contained metal snaps for clothing the decedent did not wear. Plaintiffs also contend UCI owed them a legal duty to ensure the cremains returned to the family were not commingled with those of another person. Finally, plaintiffs contend they raised triable issues of fact concerning whether UCI misrepresented that the cremains given to the family were those of Melican, that UCI would use the body for cancer research exclusively, and that UCI would use donations raised by the Melican family for cancer research.

We conclude UCI did not owe a…