A person can be declared legally dead after they are exposed to " imminent peril " and fail to return — as in a plane crash , as portrayed in the movie '' Cast Away '' . In these cases courts generally assume the person was killed , even though the usual waiting time to declare someone dead has not elapsed . Sentell also says , " The element of peril accelerates the presumption of death . " This rule was enacted after the attack on the World Trade Center , so that authorities could release death certificates . Although people presumed dead sometimes turn up alive , it is not as common as it used to be . In one case where this occurred , a man named John Burney disappeared in 1976 while having financial problems , and later reappeared in December 1982 . His company and wife had already received the death benefits — so , on returning , the life insurance company sued him , his wife , and his company . In the end , the court ruled Burney 's actions fraudulent
attack on the World Trade Center
September 11 attacks
Declared death in absentia