Wrongful Death

When a loved one dies suddenly, you understandably feel stunned, distraught, and overcome with grief and anguish. When the death is the result of another’s negligence or carelessness, these feelings are compounded by the knowledge that the death was preventable. If someone you love has died through the fault of another person or business, you may be entitled to financial compensation through a wrongful death claim or lawsuit.

The death may have been caused by a fatal motor vehicle, pedestrian or cyclist accident, by a dangerous condition on the property of a person or business, by a defective product or device, or by other wrongful acts.
Survivors who can bring wrongful death actions include the decedent’s husband or wife, domestic partner, sons and daughters, parents, and siblings. In a wrongful death claim, the responsible party can be held accountable for the damages that the surviving family members suffer, including:

Noneconomic Damages

• Loss of love, companionship, comfort, care, assistance, protection, affection, society and moral support.
• Loss of training and guidance.
• Loss of enjoyment of intimate relations, or the ability to have children (if the survivor is a spouse).

Economic Damages

• Loss of the financial support that the deceased would have contributed to the family.
• Loss of benefits such as medical insurance or pension plan contributions.
  Funeral and burial expenses.
• Value of household services that the deceased would have provided.