Current through July 1, 2026 · Last verified July 13, 2026
In one sentenceTrial Rule 25 lets a lawsuit continue after a party dies, becomes incompetent, transfers their interest, or a public officer sued in an official capacity leaves office, by substituting the right person or entity in their place.
(1)If a party dies and the claim is not thereby extinguished, the court may order substitution of the proper parties. The motion for substitution may be made by the court, any party or by the successors or representatives of the deceased party and, together with the notice of hear- ing, shall be served on the parties as provided in Rule 5 and upon persons not parties in the manner provided in Rule 4 for the service of summons. Motion for substitution may be made before or after judgment, and if substitution is not reflected in the papers upon which the appeal is based, any party shall, by notice filed with the Clerk of the court on appeal, advise the court on appeal of the substitution of any party. However, if the case is returned to a lower court after the judgment or order upon appeal becomes final, the motion may then be made in such lower court.
(2)In the event of the death of one or more of the plaintiffs or of one or more of the defend- ants in an action in which the right sought to be enforced survives only to the surviving plaintiffs or only against the surviving defendants, the action does not abate. The death may be suggested upon the record and the action shall proceed in favor of or against the sur- viving parties.
(B)Incompetency. If a party becomes incompetent, the court upon motion served as provided in subdivision (A) of this rule may allow the action to be continued by or against his representative in the same manner as against a decedent party.
(C)Transfer of interest. In case of any transfer of interest, the action may be continued by or against the original party, unless the court upon motion directs the person to whom the interest is transferred to be substituted in the action or joined with the original party. Service of the motion shall be made as provided in subdivision (A) of this rule.
(D)Persons substituted on death--Personal representative or successors in interest. The proper party or parties to be substituted for the party who dies under subsection (1) of subdivision (A) of this rule includes:
(1)a successor in interest whose rights or obligations do not pass to the representative of the deceased party’s estate; or
(2)if the interest passes to or binds the representative of the deceased party’s estate, either such representative or, if it is established that the estate of the deceased party is closed or that opening of such estate is unnecessary, the successor of such estate.
(E)Necessity of filing claims against estate when representative substituted--Proceedings to enforce judgment, execution and judgment liens. A claim based upon a judgment against a party who dies before or after judgment is entered shall be allowed by the court administering his estate even though the claim is not filed with such court if the representative of such estate is substituted as a party within the time when such claim or judgment could have been filed as a claim against the estate under the probate code. Judgments upon an action against a party who dies, whether entered before or after his death shall be satisfied from the assets of his estate by the decedent’s representative, and no execution, proceedings supplemental or enforcement orders shall issue on the judgment after the party has died as against his property; but this provision shall not prevent enforce- ment of execution liens, judgment liens, liens acquired by judicial proceedings, security interests, mortgages, liens or interests in property acquired before his death and being enforced by or under the judgment, subject to any rights of the representative to redeem or stay enforcement as now provided by law.
(F)Public Officers; Death or Separation from Office.
(1)When a public officer is a party to an action or other proceeding in an official capacity and during its pendency dies, resigns, or otherwise ceases to hold office, the action does not abate and the officer’s successor is automatically substituted as a party. Proceedings fol- lowing substitution shall be in the name of the substituted party, but any misnomer not affecting the substantial rights of the parties shall be disregarded. An order of substitution may be entered at any time, but the omission to enter such an order shall not affect the sub- stitution.
(2)A public officer who sues or is sued in an official capacity may be described as a party by the officer’s official title rather than by name; but the court may require the officer’s name to be added.
Amendment History
This rule’s current text took effect January 1, 2001. For the full history of earlier amendments and adoption orders, see the Indiana Office of Court Services.
Plain-English Summary
Rule 25 keeps a lawsuit alive through the kinds of changes that would otherwise leave it without a proper party. Subsection (A) covers death: if a party dies and the claim survives that death, the court, any party, or the deceased party’s successor or representative can move to substitute the right person in — before judgment, after judgment, or even after an appeal has started, with notice going out the same way any other motion is served. When several plaintiffs or defendants are on one side of a case and the underlying right survives only to or against the ones still living, the case doesn’t stop at all: the death gets noted on the record and the case moves forward in the names of the survivors, without any need for a substitution motion.
One detail sets Indiana’s rule apart: the federal version of this rule requires dismissal of a claim against a deceased party if nobody moves to substitute within ninety days after the death is noted on the record. Indiana’s rule includes no equivalent deadline. A court can still set its own deadline once a death is formally noted in the case, and a party who misses a court-set deadline risks the consequences that come with ignoring any court order, but the rule itself leaves the timing open rather than imposing an automatic cutoff.
Subsection (B) extends the same substitution process to a party who becomes incompetent during the case, letting the action continue against that person’s representative. Subsection (C) handles a party who transfers away their interest in the case — the lawsuit can continue in the original party’s name, or the court can order the new owner of the interest substituted or added, on motion. Subsection (D) tells you who steps into a deceased party’s shoes: either a successor whose rights or duties never pass through the estate at all — a joint tenant or an insurance beneficiary, for example — or, when the interest does pass through the estate, the estate’s representative, or a successor of the estate once it’s closed or an estate was never needed.
Subsection (E) untangles a practical problem for creditors: someone holding a claim or judgment against a party who dies doesn’t have to separately file that claim with the probate court, so long as the estate’s representative is substituted into the lawsuit within the time a probate claim would otherwise have to be filed. After substitution, the judgment gets paid out of the estate by the representative, and no execution or other enforcement action can be taken against the decedent’s property directly — except liens and security interests that had already attached and were being enforced before the death. Subsection (F) handles public officers sued in their official capacity: if the officer dies, resigns, or otherwise leaves office while the case is pending, the successor steps in automatically, without needing a court order, and the officer can be identified by title rather than by name throughout the case.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens to my lawsuit if the other party dies while the case is pending?
If the claim survives the death — meaning the underlying right to sue or be sued doesn’t die with the person — the court, any party, or the deceased party’s successor or representative can move to substitute the right person or entity in their place. The case itself doesn’t automatically end; it continues under the new party’s name once the substitution is made, whether that happens before judgment, after judgment, or during an appeal.
Is there a deadline for filing a motion to substitute after someone dies?
Trial Rule 25 doesn’t set one. Unlike the federal version of this rule, which dismisses the claim against a deceased party if nobody moves to substitute within ninety days of the death being noted on the record, Indiana’s rule has no built-in number of days. A court can still set its own deadline once the death has been formally noted in the case, and it’s wise to move promptly rather than assume there’s no time pressure at all, but the rule itself doesn’t impose an automatic cutoff.
Who gets substituted for a party who died — their estate, or their heirs?
It depends on how the interest passes. If the deceased party’s rights or obligations pass to someone directly, without going through the estate — a co-owner of jointly held property, for example, or the beneficiary of a life insurance policy — that successor can be substituted in directly. If the interest does pass through the estate, the personal representative of the estate is substituted, or, once the estate is closed or was never opened because it wasn’t needed, the estate’s successor steps in instead.
One of several plaintiffs (or defendants) died — does the whole case stop?
No, not if the right being pursued survives to or against the parties who are still living. The death can be noted on the record, and the case proceeds in favor of, or against, the surviving parties without a formal substitution motion. Substitution under Rule 25 only becomes necessary when there’s no surviving party left to carry the claim or defense forward.
Does a lawsuit against someone stop if they become incompetent during the case?
No. Rule 25(B) lets the case continue against that person’s representative, following the same substitution process used when a party dies. The motion is served the same way, and the representative then stands in for the incompetent party going forward.
Can I still collect a judgment from someone who died after I won my case?
Yes, but the mechanics change. Once the estate’s representative is substituted into the case, the judgment gets satisfied out of the estate’s assets rather than through ordinary execution against the decedent’s property directly. You generally don’t have to file a separate claim with the probate court if the representative is substituted within the time a probate claim would otherwise need to be filed — though liens or security interests that already attached to specific property before the death can still be enforced.
What happens if I sued a government official in their official capacity and they leave office?
Under Rule 25(F), the official’s successor is automatically substituted as a party — no motion or court order is required for the substitution to take effect, though the court can enter one at any time. The case continues in the name of the successor, and any misnaming that doesn’t affect anyone’s substantial rights gets disregarded.
Source & verification. The rule text is reproduced verbatim from the
official Indiana Rules of Trial Procedure (T.R. 25). Prescribed by the Supreme Court of Indiana, under its inherent constitutional rulemaking power (reaffirmed by Ind. Code 34-8-1-1 and 34-8-2-1); originally enacted by the Indiana General Assembly in 1969. The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 13, 2026. ·
Official source
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