Who Can Bring an Ohio Wrongful Death Claim?

Losing a loved one under any circumstances is one of the most tragic occurrences a family can experience. When that loss results from someone else’s negligence or wrongdoing, Ohio law offers a path to justice through a type of personal injury lawsuit known as a wrongful death claim.

But who exactly can step up to file an Ohio wrongful death claim? It’s not as simple as “anyone who’s grieving.” There are very specific rules about which family members have a right to wrongful death compensation and how the money is distributed.

Ohio courts are heavily involved in wrongful death claims and families should have legal representation that is also experienced in probate law.

What Makes a Death “Wrongful”

In Ohio, a death is considered “wrongful” if it’s caused by someone else’s wrongful act, neglect, or default, as defined in Ohio Revised Code Section 2125.01. The basic idea is that, had the person survived, they could’ve sued for personal injury. Here’s are some situations that might qualify:

• Negligence: Someone fails to act with reasonable care, and it leads to death. Think:

• • A driver running a red light and t-boning another vehicle (i.e., car accident wrongful death)
  • A doctor misdiagnosing a treatable condition that turns fatal (medical malpractice wrongful death)
  • A nursing home ignoring a resident’s bedsores until infection kills them (nursing home negligence wrongful death)
  • A trucking company fails to properly train its driver who causes a crash on the highway (truck accident wrongful death)
  • A convenience store employee who mopped the floor and did not place a ‘wet floor’ warning sign before customer falls (premises liability/slip and fall accidents)

• Intentional Acts: Deliberate harm that ends in death, like:

• • An assault or murder (a wrongful death claim is a type of civil lawsuit that can be filed even if the death stems from a criminal case)
  • A bar overserving a drunk patron who then causes a fatal crash (Ohio’s dram shop law might hold the bar responsible, too)

• Strict Liability:
  • A neighbor’s dog mauls a child in the backyard of their residence
  • Rare, but possible—like a company selling a defective product (e.g., a recalled ATV or side-by-side) that kills someone. In such situations, it may not be necessary to show negligence.

The key in each of these examples is that there’s a causal link—the wrongful conduct directly leads to the death—and someone (or something, like a corporation) can be held legally responsible. As with a regular personal injury case, this link must be proven with evidence such as police reports, medical records, and witness statements.

“Default” broadens the scope beyond blatant wrongdoing or carelessness. It implies there was a clear expectation—legal, contractual, or professional—that wasn’t met, and death resulted. For example, if a daycare promises to supervise kids but leaves them unattended near a pool, and one drowns, that’s a default—failing the duty they signed up for. It’s similarly a default—breaching a legal duty to act—if a property owner knows their faulty wiring could spark a fire but doesn’t fix it (despite building codes requiring it), and a tenant dies.

It is crucial that you seek legal representation immediately if you suspect there may be a wrongful death claim.

A death may qualify as “non-wrongful” when it lacks the element of fault or legal accountability, such as a death from natural causes (e.g., a heart attack or old age) or a freak accident, like a tree falling in a storm and killing someone (assuming no one failed to maintain the tree).

However, there are often legal gray areas that need to be investigated if wrongful death is suspected. A death that seems natural might have negligence as the underlying cause, such as a hospital missing a sepsis diagnosis. Causation can also be tricky to determine if someone is injured by negligence, but doesn’t die right away, which could raise questions about whether it was the injury—or something else—that ultimately killed them. And the deceased could be partly at fault under Ohio’s comparative negligence laws.

Some recent real-world examples of Ohio wrongful death lawsuits are those involving the East Palestine train derailment, the Majestic Care of Fairfield skilled nursing facility in the Cincinnati area, and the Mount Carmel hospital overdose scandal in Columbus.

Ohio Wrongful Death Claims – Who Files, Who Benefits, and Who Decides

In a wrongful death lawsuit, the decedent’s surviving family members—i.e., their beneficiaries—may be awarded damages to compensate them for their losses, but they aren’t the ones who file a claim. That responsibility falls upon the “personal representative” of the decedent’s estate, and the process they must follow is overseen by the probate court. Here’s a breakdown of how an Ohio wrongful death claim works:

• A personal representative is typically the “executor” named in the deceased’s will. If there is no will, the probate court appoints an “administrator” to act as the personal representative. An “administrator” is generally next of kin to the deceased, but in certain circumstances can be another family member or some other interested person who is deemed fit to carry out the necessary duties. This mechanism streamlines the legal process and ensures that all claims are handled in a unified manner so that different family members can’t file multiple wrongful death lawsuits simultaneously, potentially complicating matters.
• Family members can seek to have the personal representative removed and replaced if they believe he or she is not acting in their best interests.
• According to Ohio Revised Code Section 2125.03, the court determines a “fair and equitable” distribution among the surviving family members. An “equitable” split is based on need and is not necessarily an equal split.
• The statute prioritizes the “surviving spouse, minor children, and parents,” but others (like siblings) may get a share if they can prove a loss.
• Beneficiaries/family members can weigh in on whether they are entitled to a share of the wrongful death compensation. There might be a hearing if they disagree.
• The court weighs factors that include how much a beneficiary relied on the deceased (financially and emotionally), a beneficiary’s actual and demonstrable losses (e.g., lost companionship, care, guidance, and support), the age and physical and mental condition of each beneficiary, and fairness.
• Compensable damages in an Ohio wrongful death claim typically cover the family’s emotional and financial losses (i.e., “economic” and “non-economic” damages) such as funeral and burial expenses, loss of financial support, and beneficiaries’ loss of companionship and mental anguish.
• Wrongful death lawsuit proceeds are distributed separately from the deceased’s estate. Once approved, the money is paid directly to the beneficiaries, not through the estate, which keeps it separate from creditors or estate taxes.
• When minors are involved, the court might appoint a guardian or set up a trust to protect their share until they’re adults.

The court must approve or adjust the distribution plan before it goes into effect. For example, if a deceased worker leaves a spouse and two kids, the spouse might get 50% for lost income and support, and each kid 25%. If a sibling claims a share but wasn’t close, they’d likely get nothing unless they prove a tangible loss.

Two Year Wrongful Death Timeline: Why You Need to Act Fast

The impact of losing a loved one lasts a lifetime. But there is limited time to file a wrongful death claim.

Delays are not uncommon, especially if there are gray areas, the decedent died without a will, minor children are involved, there are disagreements about the court’s decision(s), or the case presents other complicating factors.

These delays could bump up against the two-year filing deadline for wrongful death cases. There are even some courts that have viewed the time to file a wrongful death claim due to medical malpractice as a one year deadline from the time of death. It is crucial that you seek legal representation immediately if you suspect there may be a wrongful death claim.

Hiring a law firm that handles wrongful death claims and practices estate law is essential in these cases. Wrongful death and probate issues are deeply intertwined, and working with lawyers who practice in both areas can give grieving families a legal advantage.

Graham Law’s wrongful death and probate attorneys have been serving Southeast Ohio for more than a century. Call or contact us to discuss your most personal and sensitive legal concerns in a caring, community-based setting, free of charge.