[Post mortem dissections -the legal status in Israel]

Forensic medicine is the application of science to the medical disciplines to answer questions related to criminal law. Most forensic practitioners are physicians with expertise in pathology. In the field of post mortem surgeries, the extensive area of the encounter between the law and medicine is compLicated. The doctor who is responsible for the procedure needs to take decisions on the cause of death, as well as considerations of Legal and religious issues. Furthermore, the doctor needs to take into consideration the requests of the family of the deceased. This article aims to reveal the legal, medical and moral complexity of post mortem surgeries, especially in the last few years during which new imaging techniques developed may pose as reasonable alternatives for such surgeries.