TheCable

Melissa Rivers, American actress, TV host/producer and daughter to Joan Rivers, late American comedian, has hired a New York law firm to investigate the circumstances behind her mother’s death, according to Reuters.

Making the development known on Tuesday, Ben Rubinowitz, a partner at Gair, Gair, Conason, Steigman, Mackauf, Bloom & Rubinowitz, revealed that the investigation could ultimately lead Melissa to file a civil lawsuit against the clinic where her mother was treated.

“In order to fully determine the facts and circumstances surrounding the death of Joan Rivers, we confirm that our firm has been engaged by Melissa Rivers and her family,” Ben Rubinowitz, said in a statement.

However, the statement did not bear further comment or say if Melissa intended to file a lawsuit.

Joan, an exceptional comedian, TV host and American top fashion critic, died in a hospital on September 4,  2014 at age 81, a week after she stopped breathing during an examination of the back of her throat and vocal cords, at Manhattan’s Yorkville Endoscopy.

New York’s medical examiner determined the comedian, who helped pave the way for women in comedy, died from anoxic encephalopathy, a condition caused when brain tissue is deprived of oxygen, resulting in brain damage.

Following Rivers’ death, the State Health Department launched an investigation into the clinic where Rivers was treated.

Melissa Rivers co-hosted cable network E!’s series “Fashion Police” with her mother before her death.