[LAWS] Is a brain-dead person really dead?

Question:

Some people believe that a brain-dead person is a dead person, even if the heart has not yet stopped and that it will definitely stop after that. This is what the doctors say. Is a person who has been pronounced brain-dead be considered dead, even if his heart is still working?

Answer from Sayyed Sistani:

The criterion in applying the term “dead” in so far as the application of religious laws goes is the common perception of people, in the sense that they would call him “dead”. And this is not proven in the situation mentioned in the question.

ref: http://www.najaf.org/all/index.php?l=ENG&c=q_a&keyword=&type=&to=&page=10