In the event that your loved one dies due to the negligence of another person, you may be able to sue the other person for damages. Sometimes, though, the other person dies in the incident as well, such as in the case of an auto accident.
If the other person also dies, you may think that you no longer have a legal claim. The Indiana General Assembly explains this is not true because the law allows you to go after that person’s estate.
Wrongful act law
The state law says that you can sue the responsible party or his or her personal representative. What this means is that if the other person dies, you would name the person who is responsible for his or her estate. Any damages the court awards you would then come out of that person’s estate.
You can still make the same claims against an estate that you would against a person. These include asking for medical expense coverage and other damages for things like pain and suffering and loss of companionship.
Important note
You should keep in mind that time is of the essence when it comes to making a wrongful death claim against someone’s estate. Once the court begins probate, you only have a small window of time to make a claim. To do this, you would need to already have a judgment from the court.
So, you should file your case as soon as possible in order to guarantee that the probate court will honor the judgment against the estate and disburse to you the money rightfully owed.
