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In re Estate of Vernon Dana Gilmore9/12/1997
HARTZ, Chief Judge.
{1} This appeal requires us to determine which state's law governs the distribution of the proceeds of a wrongful-death claim when the state where the tort and death occurred (Texas) is not the domicile of the decedent or of any of the potential beneficiaries of the claim. We hold that, absent compelling circumstances, the governing law is that of the state where the tort and death occurred. No such compelling circumstances exist here, because the applicable law is essentially the same as that of the states of domicile of three of the four potential beneficiaries. Because the district court erred in applying New Mexico law, we reverse and remand with instructions to distribute the proceeds in accordance with the law of Texas.
I. BACKGROUND
{2} Vernon Dana Gilmore (the Decedent) was killed on a Texas highway on April 16, 1995 when his motorcycle collided with a motor vehicle driven by a Texan (the Tortfeasor). At the time of his death, Decedent and his wife, Diane Gilmore, were domiciled in New Mexico. Other than Diane, his survivors were his two children by a former marriage--Tracy and Jason (the Children)--who have resided in the State of Washington since their parents were divorced in 1985, and his mother, Helen Morland (Decedent's Mother), who is a resident of Idaho.
{3} Diane was appointed personal representative of Decedent's estate by the Bernalillo County District Court. In that capacity she collected $110,000 for his wrongful death--$100,000 paid on Tortfeasor's liability policy and $10,000 paid on Decedent's uninsured-motorist policy. The Children petitioned the district court to distribute the proceeds in accordance with the New Mexico Wrongful Death Act, NMSA 1978, § 41-2-3 (Repl. Pamp. 1996). Diane contended that Texas law should govern. The parties moved for summary judgment. The district court granted the Children's motion and denied Diane's. Diane appeals.
{4} The damages recoverable under the New Mexico statute are based on the "worth of the life of the decedent," , even if there are no surviving relatives. Id. The recovery, however, is not an asset of the Decedent's estate. See ; cf. § 41-2-3 (if no statutory beneficiaries, proceeds of wrongful-death judgment "shall be disposed of in the manner authorized by law for the Disposition of the personal property of deceased persons"). Under Section 41-2-3 the statutory beneficiaries of the wrongful-death claim are Diane and the Children, who would each receive one-third of the proceeds.
{5} Diane contends that the insurance proceeds should be distributed in accordance with the Texas wrongful-death statute. Under Texas law the statutory beneficiaries in a wrongful-death claim are "the surviving spouse, children, and parents of the deceased." Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code Ann. § 71.004(a) (West 1997). The amount of recovery is based on the loss suffered by each of the statutory beneficiaries, with the judgment to be apportioned accordingly. See id. § 71.010(b) (distribute proceeds "in shares as found by the jury in its verdict"); St. Louis, A. & T. Ry. Co. v. Johnston, 78 Tex. 536, 15 S.W. 104, 106 (Tex. 1890), overruled on other grounds by Sanchez v. Schindler, 651 S.W.2d 249, 251 (Tex. 1983); Missouri Pac. Ry. Co. v. Henry, 75 Tex. 220, 12 S.W. 828, 829 (Tex. 1889), overruled on other grounds by Sanchez v. Schindler, 651 S.W.2d 249, 251 (Tex. 1983). In particular, a statutory beneficiary who has not suffered a compensable loss as a result of the death is not entitled to any recovery. See, e.g., Johnston.
{6} We also note the laws of the other potentially relevant states. The statutory beneficiaries under Washington law would be Diane and
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