When you lose a loved one because someone acted negligently, you have the right to seek compensation. Many people are so overwhelmed with grief that they delay legal action. This often leads to case dismissal and lost damage recovery opportunities.
Understanding how the Albuquerque wrongful death statute of limitations works can help you make educated legal decisions about filing a lawsuit. An experienced wrongful death attorney could guide you through the time limitations and explain the importance of filing deadlines.
When a person dies, their family only has a limited amount of time to file a wrongful death lawsuit. This period is three years from the date of death. If the decedent’s personal representative does not file a claim before the three years are over, they will likely lose the opportunity to recover damages.
If the wrongful death involves a government agency or employee, the case falls under the New Mexico Tort Claims Act. The statute of limitations for these cases is two years. However, the representative must present the claim within 90 days of the victim’s death. Otherwise, they could be barred from filing a wrongful death lawsuit.
In rare cases, if the cause of death was not immediately discoverable, the court in Albuquerque may allow the wrongful death statute of limitations to start at the time the wrongful act should have been discovered. However, in the majority of situations, the clock starts running on the date of the person’s death.
In New Mexico, family members can only file a wrongful death lawsuit if they are also personal representatives of the deceased’s estate. If the decedent did not appoint such a representative before their death, the court will do so on behalf of the estate.
This person, usually a close family member, is responsible for managing the deceased’s assets and legal claims, including wrongful death lawsuits.
While family members cannot file the claim directly, they can still benefit from the lawsuit’s proceeds. A practiced attorney could guide the representative and the rest of the family through the legal process.
While the wrongful death statute of limitations in Albuquerque is three years, waiting too long to file a lawsuit could be detrimental to the case. Many grieving family members make the mistake of putting off legal action, thinking that three years is a long time. However, as time passes, evidence becomes harder to collect, and witnesses start forgetting details.
That is why the faster an attorney can start investigating the incident and gathering evidence, the easier it will be to build a strong case. Since damage recovery directly depends on evidence quality, putting off the collection process could be a serious mistake.
The Albuquerque wrongful death statute of limitations is three years. While some exceptions exist, failing to take legal action during this period is likely to lead to immediate case dismissal. A grieving family must act as soon as possible by talking to a skilled attorney.
At NMAF, we have handled many local wrongful death cases and know exactly how to adhere to the statute of limitations and other deadlines. Call us for a free case review today.
