Recent Arkansas Legal Developments: Stepchildren’s Wrongful Death Rights and At-Will Employment Limits

Arkansas Court of Appeals Holds Decedent  Who Entered Lives of Stepsons When They Were Pre-Teens and Teenagers Stood In Loco Parentis, Entitling Them to Wrongful Death Benefits

Last week, the Arkansas Court of Appeals issued a decision in Rouse v. Tippit, 2025 Ark. App. 428, addressing the ability of stepchildren and non-minor claimants to seek wrongful death award proceeds due to the existence of a parent-child like relationship with the deceased.

Case and Court: Rouse v. Tippit, 2025 Ark. App. 428

Issue: Were the adult stepsons of a decedent who entered their lives between the ages of 11 and 17, while they still had their father in their life, entitled to wrongful death beneficiary status?

Holding: Yes. The wrongful death statute does not have an age requirement, and the totality of the circumstances demonstrated an in loco parentis relationship existed between the decedent and the stepsons.

Summary:

Billy Ray Waymon passed away in January 2023 due to injuries suffered in a car accident. Following the opening of an estate, a wrongful death claim was settled for $135,000. The question before the circuit court was which individuals were entitled to those proceeds as his wrongful death beneficiaries.

Mr. Waymon had no biological children. However, his ex-wife Lois had several. Her four sons were aged 11 to 17 when Waymon entered their lives in 1970. Her two biological daughters, who had a different father than their brothers, were, respectively, a toddler, and in utero at the time. Additionally, one of the sons had a daughter, Shelley, whom Lois and Billy Ray appear to have raised.

Lois and Billy Ray would go on to marry in 1975 before eventually divorcing in 2010.

There are three categories of beneficiaries under the Arkansas wrongful death statute:

1. the surviving spouse, children, father, mother, brothers, and sisters of the deceased person;  (2) persons, regardless of age, standing in loco parentis to the deceased; and (3) persons, regardless of age, to whom the deceased stood in loco parentis at any time during the life of the deceased  person.

Rouse, Slip Op. at 8 (citing Ark. Code. Ann. § 16-62-102) (emphasis in opinion).

No biological family members came forward. Neither did anyone claiming to have stood in loco parentis (essentially, playing a role in someone else’s life akin to that of a mother or father) to Mr. Waymon. Unsurprising, given his age.

Therefore, the question was whether any do the siblings, and if so, which, could rightfully claim that Waymon had stood in loco parentis to them. Unfortunately, the siblings (including Shelley) could not agree on how to split the proceeds. While there was no dispute that Waymon stood in loco parentis to the girls, it was a closer question with respect to the boys.

The court held that all were so entitled, noting that the statute does not have an age requirement and looking to the totality of the circumstances, namely:

• The boys had lived with Lois and Billy Ray and/or spent substantial time in their household after their relationship began;
• The boys’ biological father died in the 1980s and left a hole filled by Billy Ray;
• He and the boys had forged a relationship similar to that of a parent and child (to the extent that he was the only grandfather known to some children of the boys), including communication and financial support to Billy Ray even after he and Lois divorced, and maintained that relationship until his death;
• There were no biological children in the picture;
• Though the girls were awarded beneficiary status due to the parties’ agreement that they were entitled to it, there was no actual evidentiary showing that they were meaningfully more deserving of it than the brothers.

The Court of Appeals affirmed. It agreed with the circuit court’s determination that the wrongful death statute allowed for the finding of an in loco parentis relationship even where the “child” in the relationship is not a minor. It also rejected the idea that the fact that the biological father had been in the sons’ lives prevented the formation of an in loco parentis relationship with Mr. Waymon. Analyzing the totality of the circumstances, the court held:

[T]he Tippits’ relationship with Waymon began when they were teenagers in 1970 when Waymon moved in with their mother, Lois. Waymon conducted himself as a father figure in their lives until his death in 2023. The testimony included a recount of fifty-three years of history between each of the Tippits and Waymon. The evidence in this case clearly reflected an emotional bond rising to the level of a parental relationship. Waymon assumed a parental role – by disciplining them, supporting them, teaching them how to drive, teaching them various trades, and enjoying hobbies and activities like hunting and fishing together.

As they grew older, they testified as to how they helped support Waymon—financially, emotionally and physically. Eddie testified that Waymon was the only grandfather his children ever knew, and Waymon spent the holidays with them. Waymon and the Tippits continued to remain active in each other’s lives until Waymon’s death. Given those factors and in light of the totality of the circumstances, we hold that the circuit court did not clearly err in determining that an in loco parentis relationship existed between Waymon and the Tippits.

Slip. Op. at 12.

Though the brothers attempted to challenge the allocation of proceeds -the girls received roughly $16,000 each, while they received $10,000 each – the court held that this issue was not preserved.

Bottom Line: Who is entitled to damages in a wrongful death case, as well as how much, is a common issue in wrongful death cases. Things can become even less clear in cases of less straightforward family arrangements. This case provides helpful guidance to courts and litigants, especially in such cases involving stepchildren, those making claims based on relationships that formed and/or matured when they were not mere children, and, to an extent, those who had their biological parents in their lives. Wrongful death cases, and personal injury cases in general, can be complex and difficult to navigate. Our firm stands ready to assist in such matters.