Filing a McKinney Catastrophic Injury Case on Someone Else’s Behalf

If somebody has suffered a devastating injury and is in a hospital or ICU, they could be unconscious or incapacitated in some way that prevents them from contacting an attorney. In these situations, it is very important for their family to reach out to a skilled catastrophic injury attorney to begin building a civil claim on behalf of their loved one.

There are a several procedures to be aware of if you intend to file a McKinney catastrophic injury case on someone else’s behalf. Seasoned legal counsel could guide you through the entire process and help you more effectively stand up for your loved one’s rights.

Probate Administration

Sometimes, a family filing on behalf of a catastrophically injured person can open a probate administration or guardianship for the sole purpose of hiring a lawyer to help with the claim. Other times, they are going to need an administration anyway to deal with that person’s financial or medical affairs, if they do not have powers of attorney to do that.

The safest route is for people to get durable powers of attorney in advance, which specifically gives another person the right to make decisions for them if they are incapacitated. These are easy and inexpensive to accomplish, and every lawyer in the state has a form for power of attorney.

Many times, if someone does not have a power of attorney, it is best for their closest relative to reach out to an experienced lawyer who could help them. An attorney could open some type of an administration or guardianship to make sure that the case can be pursued.

Preserving Evidence

In many traumatic injury cases, it is important that the lawyer be involved early in the case, because pieces of evidence can easily disappear otherwise. Evidence such as images from the accident scene, witness statements, and video footage from nearby surveillance cameras could be difficult to obtain over time.

The family of the injured person should obtain an attorney to help collect and preserve evidence for the catastrophically injured party, since they are likely still in the hospital and not in the position to preserve anything.

If a loved one is not in a physical capacity to hire them, then lawyers could still preserve evidence. Those kinds of calls are not uncommon, and dedicated attorneys will still preserve the evidence and do what they can to help them.

A McKinney Lawyer Could Help with Filing a Catastrophic Injury Lawsuit for Someone Else

Catastrophic lawyers have a fiduciary duty to look after their clients’ best interests, and they are going to do their best to do that. Following a devastating accident, it is imperative for the family of the injured party to get a lawyer on the scene immediately.

If you have a loved one with a catastrophic injury and you know that you might have to take care of them in the short or long term, you should talk to a lawyer about filing a McKinney catastrophic injury claim on someone else’s behalf to make sure your loved one’s rights are protected.