Keller v. Bennett

MAXWELL, J.,

for the Court:

¶ 1. When a party to a lawsuit dies, and the claim survives, Mississippi Rule of Civil Procedure 25(a)(1) confers the right to substitute “the proper parties.” There must be a motion for substitution made by another party or the deceased party’s successor or representative. This motion must be served on parties following Rule 5 and interested nonparties following Rule 4. See M.R.C.P. 4, 5. And when “death is suggested upon the record by service of a statement of the fact of the death,” this motion must be timely. M.R.C.P. 25(a)(1). The rule dictates that “[t]he…