Richwine v. Matuszak

In August 2023, the Indiana State Board of Funeral and Cemetery Service issued a cease-and-desist order to Death Done Differently, LLC — a business offering death doula services run by Lauren Richwine — to stop providing and advertising their services with the accusation they were breaking the law by operating a funeral establishment without a license. To comply would have required the doulas acquiring a funeral home with a dedicated room for storing or embalming bodies, attending mortuary school, interning for a year as a funeral director, paying hundreds in fees, and passing multiple exams covering topics unrelated to death doula services.

But an end-of-life doula is not a funeral director. They don’t store or embalm bodies and offer vastly different services than a funeral director. What doulas actually do is help families plan for someone’s passing, and provide emotional support and assistance with any needs in the days leading up to a person’s death — often as unpaid volunteers.  

Death Done Differently and Richwine brought suit in a federal Indiana district court, arguing that the licensing requirements violated their First Amendment rights. The court granted a preliminary injunction in favor of the plaintiffs, barring the State from enforcing the funeral director regulations against the death doulas while the case was pending. The State appealed to the Seventh Circuit, where Compassion & Choices filed an amicus brief supporting the rights of death doulas in Indiana and discussing the important role doulas play in patient-directed care at the end of life for dying people and their loved ones.

On August 28, 2025, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ruled in favor of Death Done Differently and Richwine and kept an order in place allowing Death Done Differently to continue operating. The Court acknowledged that “the fortunate among us will have little experience burying loved ones” and “the many details associated with a loved one’s death can be overwhelming … ‘Death doulas,’ like Lauren Richwine, seek to make those arrangements easier.” In finding that Indiana had violated Richwine’s First Amendment rights, the Court reiterated the importance of death doula services: “Not everyone who experiences the death of a loved one will have a trusted companion to call for assistance and guidance on how to proceed.” 

The State of Indiana has not yet indicated whether they intend to appeal the ruling to the United States Supreme Court.