Q: Boyfriend is killed when failure to yield driver pulls out in front of him.
In May of this year my live in boyfriend of eleven years was killed by a failure to yield driver The police called me from the hospital to get there because I am on all his records as emergency contact. When I arrived at his floor the attendant and a Chaplin pulled me aside and told me to call other family members that he would not make it so I called the only other person ,his sister. I stayed with him until his heart stopped beating and he was gone, after that while still in his room the hospital brought me paper work to pick up his belongings that I signed for. Now then since then a 40 year old son has crawled out of the woodwork and filed a wrongful death suit. I know Indiana has no common law and I can not get in on this but is there anything I can do? Seems to me the hospital allowed me to sign forms and watch him die but I mean nothing otherwise. I feel like the hospital caused me undue stress. Didn't they violate a HIPPA law or something? Is there anything else I can do ? HELP
A: If you were on the contact forms they didn't violate HIPAA. Problem is that marriage didn't happen. For your peace of mind double check with a member of the Indiana Trial Lawyers Assn--they give free consultations. However do understand even the rights of children are circumscribed.
A:
My apologies for discussing this in a clinical /cold way but that is how we have to analyze things. If your daughter was married or had children, suit can be filed by/on behalf of them. You have a claim as well under most laws.
Claim would be against the drunks insurance. If your daughter's car carried "underinsured motorist" coverage would be claims under that. If the drunk was served alcohol the server would have liability. Depending on the way it happened,whether the car is available, the year of the car, there may be a claim against the manufacturer of your daughters car if the car wasn't "crashworthy." Contact a member of the Iniduana Trial Lawyers Association that handles "crashworthiness" cases. If you need names let me know.
My apologies if I left an answer for another question on this page.
A: You have no legal standing, since Indiana does not recognize common law marriage. As far as HIPPA is concerned, what are your damages, even if you HAD standing (which you do not, since YOUR records were not compromised---his were).
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