Walk It Through: The Stranger Who Stopped
CPR at a crash, a worry about being sued, a death, and the family's two years.
A driver stops at a crash, and a passenger in the other car is not breathing. A dispatcher starts giving CPR instructions.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
One crash and one family. Licensed health care providers at the scene, the criminal case against the driver, insurance limits and when the 2 years begin to run are not worked through here.
A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.
Words this turns on
Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.
- Emergency care given gratuitouslyEmergency care or assistance given in an emergency, in good faith, by someone the person helped is not required or expected to pay, for which the helper is not liable for civil damages unless it amounts to gross negligence.
- Age of majority18, at which a person under no legal disability can enter into any contract and is considered of lawful age, as is a person declared emancipated.
- HeirIn a wrongful death action, someone who would inherit the decedent's separate property if there were no will. The heirs may sue for their own grief, lost support and companionship.