McALLEN — McAllen police report two men died in a December 29 car crash. According to a news release, the single-vehicle crash happened at 2:05 a.m. at the intersection of Pecan Ave. and 12th St.
The police report states that 22-year-old Daniel Guadalupe Saenz of McAllen was driving west on Pecan when he apparently lost control of his vehicle at 12th and crashed into a utility pole.
Saenz and a passenger identified as 40-year-old Nathan Gower Schwarz of Pharr were transported to a local hospital where they died from their injuries.
At last report, the cause of the accident was still under investigation.
When a defendant dies before a personal injury case is resolved
When a defendant dies before a personal injury lawsuit is filed, the next proper defendant would be the estate of the deceased. This applies whether the person died during the accident, or subsequent to and unrelated to the wreck.
If a Probate action in the dead person’s estate is already pending, then the plaintiff has the choice of intervening in that probate action, or filing a separate civil action along with a suggestion of death and a motion for scire facias.
A scire facias is a judicial writ requiring a person to appear in court and argue why a judgment against them shouldn’t be annulled, vacated, or executed.
According to Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 153: “Where the defendant shall die, upon the suggestion of death being entered of record in open court, or upon petition of the plaintiff, the clerk shall issue a scire facias for the administrator or executor or heir requiring him to appear and defend the suit and upon the return of such service, the suit shall proceed against such administrator or executor or heir.”
Once a suggestion of death is entered the Court is obligated to issue a scire facias to make the administrator or executor of the defendant’s estate answer and defend the lawsuit.
Depending upon which probate court the probate action is pending in, the Plaintiff’s lawyer may choose to intervene therein. If so, then the case proceeds forward in that court just as any other civil personal injury trial. If there is no probate pending, the plaintiff’s lawyer may choose to bring forced probate of the case or they may proceed with a separate civil action and file a motion for scire facias substitution.
Get expert legal representation
Identifying the proper party is critical to your case. Failure to identify, sue, and serve the proper party in a timely manner can result in the case being dismissed and forever barred. A qualified personal injury attorney should always be consulted before taking legal actions of any sort. The J. Gonzalez Law Firm has successful experience with highly-complicated personal injury lawsuits. Call us today at 1-800-CAR-CRASH If you would like a free consultation. You can also contact us via this website.
