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.