Who Can File a Wrongful Death Claim in Nebraska

By the FigureMyTax Editorial Team · How we calculate

Nebraska requires the personal representative to bring the action, and the money is divided by each relative's pecuniary loss.

Only the personal representative

Under Neb. Rev. Stat. 30-810, the action is brought by and in the name of the decedent's personal representative for the exclusive benefit of the widow or widower and next of kin. Annotations to the statute note that the word “shall” precludes anyone but the personal representative from bringing it, and the cause of action cannot be assigned.

How the money is divided

The proceeds are paid to and distributed among the widow or widower and next of kin in the proportion that the pecuniary loss suffered by each bears to the total pecuniary loss of all of them. A recovery is not necessarily divided equally. A relative absent from the decedent's life may suffer little or no pecuniary loss and may not share.

What counts

The loss is pecuniary. Annotations state that damages for mental suffering, bereavement or solace to the next of kin are not recoverable, and neither are damages for the decedent's own mental anguish before death, but the pecuniary value of lost support, society, comfort and companionship is.

A separate survival action

Nebraska also has a survival statute, section 25-1401, that preserves the decedent's own claim and runs alongside the wrongful death action.

Malpractice deaths

In a medical malpractice case, the Hospital-Medical Liability Act caps total damages at $2.25 million.

This is general information, not legal advice, and the state comparisons above are illustrative, not an exhaustive survey. Confirm how Nebraska's rules apply to your specific case with a licensed Nebraska attorney.