A recurring inquiry from members of the public concerns the Bureau's authority to certify figures who are no longer living. This bulletin addresses the methodology in detail.
Statutory Basis
Posthumous certification is authorised under registry bylaw 7(b), which provides that "the Bureau's certification authority extends to all subjects whose conduct is documented in the public record, irrespective of whether the subject remains living." The bylaw is identical in language to the founding charter and has not been amended since the registry's establishment in MMXXVI.
Conditions for Initiation
The Bureau initiates posthumous review under three conditions: (1) the candidate's conduct is documented to the standard required for editorial entry — minimum two independent peer-reviewed citations; (2) the candidate is unambiguously deceased per public record; and (3) the candidate's lifetime activity falls within a category currently maintained on the registry.
Documentation Standard
Posthumous entries are held to the same documentation standard as living-figure entries. Citations must trace to verifiable archival sources: court records, government archives, peer-reviewed academic publications, or major journalistic outlets with editorial oversight. Memoir, anecdotal report, and unverified secondary commentary are excluded.
The Bureau does not relax its standards for figures of historical interest. A figure widely "known" to have engaged in conduct who lacks documented citation is not eligible for inclusion.
Disposition of Disputes from Estates
Estates of certified figures may file Form CS-DISPUTE on behalf of the decedent. Disputes are reviewed under the same standard as living-figure disputes: the Bureau considers only factual challenges to the underlying record, not objections to characterisation or framing.
Where a dispute is accepted, the input is corrected and the score recomputed. Where a dispute is rejected, the rejection rationale is published in the entry's audit log.
Tier Assignment
Posthumous entries are eligible for all tiers (Lifetime Achievement, Distinguished Merit, Certified). Tier is determined by the same composite-score thresholds applied to living-figure entries; the methodology does not distinguish between living and deceased candidates in the scoring step.
Notification
The Bureau does not notify estates of certification. The Bureau's position is that public-record conduct is, by definition, public, and certification is a documentary act rather than an accusation requiring service.
FAQ
Can a figure refuse certification before death?
No. The registry catalogues conduct, not consent. The Bureau accepts no opt-out filings for editorial-track candidates, living or otherwise.
Are very old historical figures eligible?
Yes, subject to the documentation standard. The Bureau holds entries on figures from the nineteenth century where contemporary archives meet the citation requirement. Pre-modern figures are typically excluded for documentation reasons rather than policy.
Does the Bureau remove certifications upon death of a living certificant?
No. Death of a certificant transfers the entry to the posthumous register. The certificate remains in force in perpetuity unless revoked for factual grounds.
How does the SCUMBAG INDEX handle deceased figures?
Identically. The Duration component caps at sixty years for both living and deceased subjects. The Impact component uses lifetime totals where applicable.
Can an estate file a Form CS-DISPUTE?
Yes. Estates have standing to file factual disputes. Disputes filed on grounds of "harm to legacy" are not considered.