What is the effect of death when the claim in a pending action is purely personal?

• A. The claim is extinguished and the action is dismissed.
• B. The claim continues against the estate.
• C. The heirs automatically substitute for the party.
• D. The case is transferred to probate court.

Answer: (A)

When the claim is purely personal, death ends the right to sue because such a action is personal to the plaintiff and cannot be inherited or continued by others. The remedy dies with the person who had the cause of action, so the court must dismiss the case since there is no one left who can pursue that personal claim.

This is different from claims that survive death—where the right to sue passes to the estate or is maintainable by heirs or a representative if the action involves interests that survive or are attached to property. In those situations, substitution or continuation could occur. Transferring the case to probate court isn’t the mechanism for continuing a purely personal civil action; probate handles estate administration, not the ongoing pursuit of a personal claim against a defendant.