Do they have a right to sue my brother?
My brother is 46 and has had epilepsy since he was 18. His seizures are controlled by medication so he is able to drive (you are permitted to drive if you only have 1-2 seizures per year and he falls into this category). A few days ago however my family's worst fear happened - he had a seizure while he was driving. My brother & his wife are both severely injured but are expected to recover over time. Unfortunately he hit another car in the accident and the person was killed instantly. My family talked to the police officer who reported the accident & she said they wouldn't ticket him because the accident was caused by a medical condition & not intentional. Our question now is this: Does the victim's family have a right to sue my brother for the fatality? If so, will they sue him personally and "take everything he has" or will they just sue his insurance company or both? We haven't spoken with the victim's family & nothing has been said about it yet but we are all scared it may happen.
Answer:
The people that he hit potentially could have a strong case. It doesn't mean that they will win. They could claim that your brother shouldn't have been driving or should have been taking medication. I would imagine that the opposing party would bring in medical experts. (Don't bash me, I am just looking at it through their perspective.) If I was your brother, I would hire a lawyer ASAP. The other party is going through a shock phase I imagine, but I would bet my savings that sometime in the near future that your brother will be served with papers. Good luck to your brother. What a horrible situation for all parties involved.
Yes they do.
They can argue that (despite the legality) he shouldn't have been behind the wheel. Even so, he did cause the accident.
The fact is that his insurance is likely the one to pay, not him personally.
They can sue him, but his ins co should stand up for him. Have you discussed this at length with his ins co?It might be a good idea, just so you know what is going on and don't have to be scared to death.
Good luck.
People can sue who ever they want. It's a case of whether they will win. I hope your brother had car insurance because they will handle all the legal issues for him. Good luck.
Tricky case. Anything could happen. Make sure you have a strong lawyer on standby.
The purpose of insurance is to protect your assets against this kind of risk.
The victim's family has every right to sue for a lot of money. Your insurance company may cover it, then again may not. Nothing is certain.
Your family took a risk, you rolled some dice, you lost the gamble, and it is too soon to know what all the costs will be.
He falls into the category of 1-2 seizures a year so he is allowed to drive but he wasn't taking medication. No offense, but this is stupid. If a doctor prescribes you a certain amount of medication you take it, because so many bad things can happen. He can easily get sued unless he has a VERY good lawyer.
Yes they have the right to sue. Yes they can sue him personally, the insurance company or both.
What a very sad situation. I hope they recover well. However, he did know he had this medical condition, and drove even though there was a mild risk. He is responsible.
I would imagine the victim's family might take your family's non-communication differently; I would be inclined to send an expession of sympathy at their tragic loss in this terrible accident.
Do they have a right to sue? Yes they do. Will they win? It depends on all of the facts, did your brother take his medication as required? Do you have paperwork to prove he fell within the permitted category? My dad did this once and no one sued him. But, he did not hit an occupied vehicle. It is best that your brother does not drive in the future. As far as what can they get, it depends on the type of insurance he had on his car at that time.
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