A wrongful death lawyer handles civil lawsuits for families who have lost a loved one due to the negligence or wrongful act of another party. In Florida, wrongful death is defined as “when a person’s death is caused by the wrongful act, negligence, default or breach of contract or warranty.” In these cases, the deceased person’s estate may file a civil lawsuit to recover financial compensation from the at-fault party. In addition to handling these civil lawsuits, wrongful death lawyers often have experience with personal injury cases. At Dolman Law Group, one of our wrongful death attorneys can help your family hold the responsible parties financially accountable for the losses you have suffered. We offer free consultations to discuss your legal options and the legal process in further detail. Investigating Your Loved One’s Death The facts involved in wrongful death cases are often murky. People may give conflicting accounts regarding what happened. That may happen because of genuine confusion or misunderstandings. Still, it could also occur when a liable person or entity attempts to cover things up or shift blame to avoid accepting responsibility. A wrongful death attorney can investigate to get to the bottom of what happened. For example, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reported 33,654 fatal motor vehicle accidents in 2018. If your loved one died in a car crash, a lawyer could review the police report and statements from eyewitnesses or anyone in the car with your relative during the collision. An attorney may discover that a nearby surveillance camera recorded the collision or the moments leading up to or immediately following it. A video may provide crucial evidence that the other driver violated a traffic law or acted recklessly. That information may prove useful when building a wrongful death case. Another common wrongful death claim could occur if your family member died because of a medical error. Johns Hopkins University found that one in 10 deaths result from medical errors. A lawyer can review medical records and enlist the help of one or more experts to determine whether the physician who treated your relative met the standard of care. Suppose the investigation reveals that the doctor made an inaccurate diagnosis, prescribed a drug contraindicated for your family member’s condition or had a known allergy to, or made a mistake when performing surgery. That could help the legal team establish that the physician committed medical malpractice. That evidence could also help the team build a claim against the hospital where your family member received treatment. A Lawyer Can Explain Your Legal Rights Laws related to wrongful death lawsuits vary from state to state. Depending on where you live, you may not qualify to sue for compensation. Some states limit the right to sue to immediate family members, while others allow distant relatives—and even nonrelatives—to file a wrongful death lawsuit in some circumstances. In other states, family members may not sue at all; only a representative of the deceased person’s estate may file a wrongful death suit. If they collect a financial award, the representative distributes the money to eligible relatives. States also differ regarding the statute of limitations (the amount of time that plaintiffs have to file a lawsuit). The time frame may be a year or longer, depending on where you live. If you miss the deadline to file a lawsuit, you may forfeit your right to sue, even if you have a legitimate claim. Under some circumstances, the statute of limitations may be tolled (extended). A wrongful death attorney familiar with your state’s laws can explain what you need to know. An Attorney Can Seek Financial Compensation A wrongful death lawyer can pursue awards to cover both economic and noneconomic damages. Economic damages might include costs for medical care your family member received before their death, funeral and burial expenses, and the loss of income that your family member would have earned if they had lived. Noneconomic damages are more difficult to quantify. They could include: Under some circumstances, you might also sue for punitive damages. Those additional damages punish a liable party for particularly egregious behavior and serve as a warning to others not to engage in similar actions. A lawyer who has experience handling wrongful death cases can look at all the relevant facts and determine a fair amount of compensation for your situation. The attorney can file a lawsuit and attempt to negotiate an out-of-court settlement. While settlements resolve many civil cases, sometimes the parties cannot agree. If that happens, a lawyer may take the case to trial and let a jury decide whether you should receive compensation and, if so, how much. Contact the Wrongful Death Attorneys at Ben Crump Law, PLLC Ben Crump Law, PLLC, has a team of lawyers who have helped clients across the United States get through some of the most trying times of their lives. We have represented families in shock following the death of a loved one and obtained financial compensation to help them move forward. We do everything that a wrongful death lawyer must do to pursue a claim. We can investigate what led to your relative’s death, explain your legal rights, and file a wrongful death lawsuit to seek financial compensation for you and other affected members of your family. Call our office today at (844) 777-4453 to speak with a member of our staff. Qualifications for Filing a Wrongful Death Claim One of the most important duties of a wrongful death lawyer is establishing that the surviving family has the legal right to pursue damages in a wrongful death claim against the negligent party. Generally, the decedent must have had the right to bring a personal injury claim if they had survived. When the decedent passes away, the surviving family members acquire the right to bring a wrongful death claim, as explained below. In other words, if the circumstances of the accident would have entitled the decedent to bring a personal injury action had they survived, a wrongful death claim is possible. A Wrongful Death Attorney Does Not … Continue reading What Does a Wrongful Death Lawyer Do?