BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. – The parents of Josh Gad, an actor who famously voiced “Olaf” in Disney’s animated film “Frozen,” have filed a lawsuit against a South Florida cemetery, alleging that the cemetery wrongfully sold a grave space that had already been reserved for them.
According to the lawsuit, Stanton Schwartz and his wife Susan Gad Schwartz jointly purchased and established their family arrangements for an eternal resting place at Eternal Light Memorial Gardens cemetery. The Schwartzes selected Eternal Light due to its representation as the premier all-Jewish cemetery, aligning with their Hebrew faith and promising “From Generation to Generation … Service You Can Trust.”
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The couple intended to be buried next to each other and alongside Susan Schwartz’s parents, Evelyn and Joseph Greenblat, the grandparents of Josh Gad, who were both Holocaust survivors.
The court filing states the couple had purchased four adjacent grave spaces to fulfill their vow of eternal togetherness. The Greenblats have since been interred in their designated spaces.
However, the lawsuit alleges that Eternal Light improperly double-sold Stanton Schwartz’s plot to someone else and allowed unauthorized remains to be buried in his space. The Schwartzes discovered the error through a third party, as the cemetery failed to notify them of the situation.
Despite demands, the cemetery has refused to remove the remains from the plot, leaving the Schwartzes distressed. Pierson emphasized that Eternal Light must be held accountable for failing to uphold its moral and legal obligations to the family.
“The cemetery clearly disregarded the requirements of the Florida Funeral, Cemetery, and Consumer Services Act,” said Pierson, a partner with Kelley/ Uustal. “Eternal Light must be held accountable for the failure to uphold its moral and legal obligations to this family.”
The suit asserts that the cemetery had a duty to maintain accurate records, update them properly, and ensure no third party’s remains were interred in Stanton Schwartz’s grave space.
The Schwartzes expressed emotional distress over the ordeal, especially Susan Schwartz, who lamented being unable to fulfill her vow of eternal togetherness with her parents.
“We have suffered emotionally throughout this ordeal,” said the Schwartzes in a statement. “Mrs. Schwartz is especially heartbroken that she is unable to keep her sacred vow to be together for eternity with her parents in their final resting place. I should not be in this terrible position where my wish to be buried together with my husband and my parents has been destroyed.”
“This is a very sensitive matter, and all this anguish could have been avoided had Eternal Light lived up to its motto of ‘service you can trust,”' said Stanton Schwartz.
Eternal Light Memorial Gardens gave a response to the family’s lawsuit, which you can read here:
“We feel strongly that all client information remains confidential and, accordingly, we are not in a position to discuss any family’s concerns. With respect to this matter, we continue our efforts to resolve this matter amicably and resolve the family’s concerns.”
Read the court filing below: