Q: My sister switched my dad's Hernia mesh lawsuit to her name, I took care of him, he passed will she get it all
A: Not in West Virginia. Your sister apparently was appointed the Administratrix (the female version of an administrator) of your father's estate, or was named the executrix of his will. Her job is to act on behalf of his estate, and as one of his beneficiaries, you are entitled to make a claim for benefits. If the recovery is for wrongful death, a spouse, children, parents, siblings, and anyone equitably entitled to recover can make a claim for a portion of the settlement or jury award. The amount you are entitled to receive depends on your relationship to the deceased, compared to the others entitled to receive a portion of the recovery. Most of the time, in my experience, the beneficiaries of a wrongful death recovery work out a division of the recovery before the hearing on the distribution; if not, a judge hears evidence and makes a decision on the distribution of the proceeds after paying the medical bills, funeral and burial expenses, attorneys' fees and the costs of litigation. If the case is for an injury that did NOT result in death, the distribution will be by the terms of a will, or by the division set forth in Chapter 42 of the WV Code.
Tim Akpinar agrees with this answer
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