.avif)
Wrongful Death Lawyer
in Fort Wayne, IN
A loved one's death from someone else's negligence is a loss no settlement can undo, but it can ease the financial burden that usually follows. At Theisen Hubley Law, we help Fort Wayne families pursue compensation for lost support, companionship, and future earnings, so you can focus on grieving, not fighting for money so your family can survive.
Honors & Memberships
Theisen Hubley Law:
A Law Firm Built for People
Theisen Hubley Law was founded in 2001 and is based in downtown Fort Wayne, Indiana. We are not a high-volume firm where every client feels like a file number. We are a local team that believes people deserve honest guidance, direct communication, and lawyers who take a wrongful death case as seriously as we do.
Our work often begins at a difficult point in someone’s life, whether a crash, workplace injury, disability, denied claim, or a family loss. We know clients may be stressed, frustrated, or unsure what to do next. Our role is to bring structure to the process, explain what matters, and move the case forward with care and purpose.
Not Sure Where to Start?
Start With a Free Consultation.
Many people don't know what kind of case they have. That's okay. Tell us what happened. We'll listen and help you figure out the next step.
Causes of Wrongful Death Claims We Handle in Fort Wayne
A wrongful death claim can arise from almost any situation where someone else's negligence caused a fatal injury. Of the personal injury categories we handle across Northeast Indiana, these are the ones most likely to end in a wrongful death claim.
Car Accidents
Rear-end collisions and intersection crashes are among the most frequent types of crashes on Fort Wayne roads, and the most severe among them turn fatal. When a family loses someone to a driver's negligence on I-69, US-30, Coliseum Boulevard, or any other Allen County road, we investigate the crash and pursue every source of compensation available.
Truck Accidents
Indiana sees more than 5,700 large-truck collisions and roughly 135 deaths a year, and most of the people killed are in passenger vehicles, not the truck itself. These cases often involve a trucking company and its insurer in addition to the driver, and their legal teams typically start working the case within hours.
Motorcycle Accidents
Motorcycle crashes tend to cause more severe injuries than standard auto collisions, and insurers are often quick to blame the rider before the facts are fully known. Riders lack the seatbelts and airbags that protect drivers in other vehicles, so a crash that would be survivable in a car can be fatal on a motorcycle, something insurers frequently use to argue the crash itself was the primary cause rather than the other driver's negligence.
Workplace Accidents
A death on the job entitles surviving dependents to workers' compensation death benefits, and if a third party outside the employer, such as a contractor or equipment manufacturer, contributed to the death, a separate wrongful death claim may run alongside it. We sort out which benefits come from which claim so nothing gets left on the table.
Dog Attacks
Indiana holds dog owners to a strict liability standard, meaning a fatal mauling can support a wrongful death claim even if the dog had never bitten anyone before. We look into the animal's history, any local ordinance violations, and whether the owner failed to control or contain the dog.
Premises Liability
Property owners owe lawful visitors a duty of reasonable care, and a violation of that duty, such as ignored security concerns, broken equipment, or a known hazard left unaddressed, can turn fatal. These cases often come down to what the property owner knew and when, and whether similar complaints or incidents had come up before.
Slip and Fall Accidents
A fatal fall caused by a wet floor, broken stairway, or other unaddressed hazard can happen in a grocery store, an apartment complex, or a parking lot, anywhere a property owner failed to fix or warn about a known danger. Like premises liability claims generally, these cases often turn on whether the owner had notice of the hazard, meaning they knew or reasonably should have known, before the fall happened.
What Is a Wrongful Death Under Indiana Law
Under Indiana Code § 34-23-1-1, a wrongful death occurs when a person's death is caused by the wrongful act or omission of another, in circumstances that would have entitled the deceased to bring a personal injury claim had they survived. In practice, that means a wrongful death claim can exist wherever ordinary negligence, a careless driver, an unsafe property, or a preventable workplace hazard causes a fatal injury rather than a survivable one.
Indiana actually has three separate wrongful death statutes, and which one applies depends on the deceased's age, marital status, and dependents:
- The General Wrongful Death Act applies when the deceased leaves behind a spouse, dependent children, or dependent next of kin.
- The Adult Wrongful Death Act applies to unmarried adults without dependents.
- The Child Wrongful Death Act applies when the deceased was a minor.
Because the applicable statute affects what your family can recover, identifying the right one is one of the first things we do in every case.
Compensation Available in a Fort Wayne Wrongful Death Claim
When a family member's death was caused by someone else's negligence, Indiana law allows surviving family members to pursue financial compensation for what that loss actually costs, not just funeral bills, but everything the family loses going forward. We handle the legal and insurance work so you don't have to.
Economic Damages
These are the direct financial losses caused by the death, documented through pay stubs, bills, and financial records. They may include:
- Loss of the financial support the deceased would have provided
- Loss of future earnings and benefits
- Medical expenses related to the final injury or illness
- Funeral and burial costs
Non-Economic Damages
These account for the personal and relational impact of the loss, which receipts alone don't capture. They may include:
- Loss of companionship, care, and guidance
- Loss of the deceased's love and affection
No two wrongful death claims are valued the same way. What your family may recover depends on the deceased's age, income, and the relationships left behind, and our team reviews each detail together in a free consultation.
What Evidence Matters Most in a Fort Wayne Wrongful Death Claim
A strong wrongful death claim is built on documentation gathered as early as possible. The records that matter most typically include:
- Police and incident reports: The responding agency's official account often forms the foundation for the rest of the case.
- Medical and autopsy records: These establish the cause of death and connect it to the incident.
- Witness statements: Accounts from anyone who saw the accident or the events leading up to it.
- Employment and earnings records: Used to calculate the financial support and future earnings your family has lost.
- Photos and physical evidence: Visual documentation of the scene, vehicle damage, or hazardous conditions helps establish exactly how the incident happened.
- Expert analysis: Accident reconstructionists, economists, and other experts are often needed to establish fault and calculate the full value of the claim.
The sooner our experienced attorneys are involved, the more of this evidence we can preserve.
Steps to Take After a Loved One's Death
What your family does in the days and weeks after a loved one's death can affect a future wrongful death claim.
Request the Police or Incident Report
Ask for a copy of the official report as soon as it becomes available, usually a few days to a few weeks after the incident. Getting it early means we can act on what it says without losing time.
Preserve Evidence Where Possible
The scene, damaged property, and other physical evidence can be repaired, cleaned up, or discarded quickly, sometimes within days. If you're able to safely document anything before that happens, it can make a real difference later in the claim.
Be Careful What You Say to Insurance Companies
An adjuster may reach out within days of the death and ask for a recorded statement. You're not required to give one, and anything you say, even something as simple as an apology or an offhand comment, can later be used to argue your family is owed less.
Keep Records of Financial Impact
Every bill, receipt, and piece of paperwork tied to your loss can factor into your claim, so start a folder as things come in: insurance correspondence, employer records, anything you're not sure matters yet. Sorting it out later is much harder than saving it now.
Don't Wait to Speak with an Attorney
Evidence can disappear, and memories fade quickly, and Indiana's filing deadline applies no matter how the family is coping. Reaching out early doesn't commit you to anything, but it gives us the best chance to protect what your family may be owed.
Indiana Wrongful Death Laws You Should Know
These are the Indiana laws most likely to affect your claim before you accept any settlement offer or sign any document from an insurance company.
Statute of Limitations
Under Indiana Code § 34-23-1-1, a wrongful death claim generally must be filed within two years of the date of death. Missing this deadline can permanently bar your family from recovering compensation, regardless of how strong the underlying case is.
Comparative Fault
Because a wrongful death claim depends on whether the deceased could have brought a personal injury claim had they survived, Indiana's modified comparative fault rule can apply. Under Indiana Code § 34-51-2-6, if the deceased was partially at fault, the family's recovery may be reduced by that percentage, and recovery is barred entirely if the deceased was more than 50 percent at fault.
Survival Actions vs. Wrongful Death Claims
A wrongful death claim compensates the family for what they've lost. A separate survival action, brought on behalf of the deceased's estate, can compensate for the pain, suffering, and medical expenses the deceased personally experienced between the injury and death. Depending on the facts, a family may be entitled to pursue both, though the rules governing survival actions are distinct from the wrongful death statutes above.
Why Fort Wayne Families Choose
Our Skilled Wrongful Death Lawyers
Families across Northeast Indiana come to us because we approach wrongful death claims with the same preparation and attention we bring to litigation.
What Our Clients Say
Meet the Experienced Attorneys Handling Your Case
The attorneys at Theisen Hubley Law are dedicated to advocating for real people. With decades of local trial experience, our team provides the high-stakes representation you need and the personal accessibility you deserve.
-
John C. Theisen
Attorney -
Nathaniel O. Hubley
Attorney -
Christina R. Hubley
Attorney
We Help Clients Across Northeast Indiana
While our main physical office is located in downtown Fort Wayne, we proudly serve injured and disabled clients throughout the entire region. If your injuries make it hard to travel, we are more than happy to offer virtual meetings.
We represent families pursuing wrongful death claims throughout:
- Allen County
- Kosciusko County
- Wabash County
- Adams County
- LaGrange County
- Wells County
- DeKalb County
- Noble County
- Whitley County
- Huntington County
- Steuben County
Theisen Hubley Law
We're Ready
When You Are
You don’t need to have everything figured out before you call. You just need to start the conversation.
FAQ
Under Indiana law, a wrongful death claim is filed by the personal representative of the deceased's estate, a role the court appoints and that's typically filled by a surviving spouse or family member. If your family hasn't gone through this process yet, we can walk you through how a personal representative gets appointed.
No. A wrongful death claim is a separate civil lawsuit that seeks financial compensation for the family. It proceeds independently of any criminal charges that may or may not be filed against the responsible party.
It depends on the complexity of the case and whether the insurance company disputes liability or a fair value of the claim. Straightforward cases may resolve in a matter of months, while cases that require litigation can take a year or more. We give every family a realistic timeline estimate during the free consultation.
Insurance companies and opposing attorneys move quickly to protect their own interests, and a family without legal help can lose ground before they realize a mistake was made. A Fort Wayne wrongful death lawyer manages the evidence, the deadlines, and the negotiations so your family isn't learning an unfamiliar legal process while grieving.