Sister-in-law
Junior Member
What is the name of your state? Iowa
Almost 2 years ago my then 89 year old mother was knocked down by a malfunctioning automatic door when exiting her doctor's office. She broke her hip and spent 5 months hospitalized recovering. She was then released to a nursing home for rehabilitative therapy. Although she recovered from the hip fracture, she never returned home, primarily do to the manipulation of my sibling who lived with her. His intent was to institute a lawsuit (he had POA), and he believed the case would have more value if she could include the cost of a nursing home in her request for damages. She trusted him and took his advice.
The case was filed at the end of May and sadly, my mother passed away in June after a 4 day hospital stay due to a urinary tract infection. The death certificate lists the rupture of an abdomintal aortic aneurysm as the cause of death. She was diagnosed with the aneurysm close to a decade ago. My brother is executor of my mother's estate, which is worth a great deal. He has decided to pursue the lawsuit, which is asking for $900,000 and is partially based on a formulary for life expectancy of 4 1/2 years for a 90 year old after suffering a broken hip (!). The thesis his lawyer is adopting is that if not for the broken hip she would not have been in a nursing home. And if she hadn't been in a nursing home she would not have contracted the infection, which they claim was the cause of death, not the aneurysm. Trouble is, the death certificate says something different and they are now putting pressure on the physician to change the cause of death.
My questions are, can that be done legally? (There was no autopsy and the remains have been cremated.) Secondly, is there anything I can do as a beneficiary of the estate to block what I consider to be a very ill-advised suit with little chance of a favorable outcome, particularly considering Medicare and various insurers would be first in line for dividing any settlement. Also, the doctor's office is countersuing about 5 other businesses involved in the sale, installation, and maintenance of the doors. In addition, the lawyer my brother hired is working by the hour, and not on a contingency basis. (!!) I realize this question has overlaps to other forums, but since it started with a personal injury claim, I thought it best to post here. Thanks for any input.What is the name of your state?
Almost 2 years ago my then 89 year old mother was knocked down by a malfunctioning automatic door when exiting her doctor's office. She broke her hip and spent 5 months hospitalized recovering. She was then released to a nursing home for rehabilitative therapy. Although she recovered from the hip fracture, she never returned home, primarily do to the manipulation of my sibling who lived with her. His intent was to institute a lawsuit (he had POA), and he believed the case would have more value if she could include the cost of a nursing home in her request for damages. She trusted him and took his advice.
The case was filed at the end of May and sadly, my mother passed away in June after a 4 day hospital stay due to a urinary tract infection. The death certificate lists the rupture of an abdomintal aortic aneurysm as the cause of death. She was diagnosed with the aneurysm close to a decade ago. My brother is executor of my mother's estate, which is worth a great deal. He has decided to pursue the lawsuit, which is asking for $900,000 and is partially based on a formulary for life expectancy of 4 1/2 years for a 90 year old after suffering a broken hip (!). The thesis his lawyer is adopting is that if not for the broken hip she would not have been in a nursing home. And if she hadn't been in a nursing home she would not have contracted the infection, which they claim was the cause of death, not the aneurysm. Trouble is, the death certificate says something different and they are now putting pressure on the physician to change the cause of death.
My questions are, can that be done legally? (There was no autopsy and the remains have been cremated.) Secondly, is there anything I can do as a beneficiary of the estate to block what I consider to be a very ill-advised suit with little chance of a favorable outcome, particularly considering Medicare and various insurers would be first in line for dividing any settlement. Also, the doctor's office is countersuing about 5 other businesses involved in the sale, installation, and maintenance of the doors. In addition, the lawyer my brother hired is working by the hour, and not on a contingency basis. (!!) I realize this question has overlaps to other forums, but since it started with a personal injury claim, I thought it best to post here. Thanks for any input.What is the name of your state?