Court Reaffirms Rule That Case Cannot Proceed Against a Deceased Defendant

In the case of Carter v. Marchisotto, No. GD 21-844 (C.P. Alleg. Co. May 13, 2024 Hertzberg, J.), the court, in a Rule 1925 Opinion, justified its decision in granting summary judgment in a trip and fall case.

After initially noting that the court’s entry of summary judgment against one of the Defendants did not result in a final Order disposing of all claims and that, therefore, the Plaintiff’s appeal should be quashed, the court still addressed certain other issues raised in the event the Superior Court went on to consider the merits of the appeal.

Of note, the court noted that the Plaintiffs had listed an administratrix of the estate of a deceased Defendant as a party Defendant. However, the defense in the case had shown that no such administratrix had been formally appointed by the court.

Accordingly, the court noted that it had properly dismissed that Defendant, in part, under Pennsylvania law that holds that no dead person can be a party to a lawsuit because a court does not have any jurisdiction until a personal representative is formally substituted in the place of the dead party.

The court noted that it was improper for the Plaintiff to file a case directly against the heirs of the deceased Defendant and avoid the proper procedures for the appointment of a personal representative of the estate and, thereafter, substituting the estate of the deceased Defendant as the party Defendant.

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Source: The Legal Intelligencer Common Pleas Case Alert - www.Law.com (July 4, 2024).