What is a wrongful death lawsuit? » What's a wrongful death claim worth?

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  If someone’s negligence is the fault of your loved one’s death then choose an experienced wrongful death attorney to protect your rights and bring justice on behalf of your loved one.
  
  
  
  

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What's a wrongful death claim worth?

How to determine the value of your loved one's wrongful death lawsuit

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A wrongful death claim arises when someone dies as a result of the negligence of another. Usually, the way a death occurs does not effect the value of a wrongful death claim, except in cases of severe recklessness or bad conduct on the part of the person who caused the death. For instance, if a person died in a motor vehicle accident, the value of their claim would be the same as if the same person died due to medical malpractice. However, there are factors that can impact the value of a case which are unrelated to whether the death was caused by another motorist, a physician at a hospital, or the manufacturer of a dangerous product.

Key factors in determining whether a wrongful death lawsuit can be filed

In order to succeed in a wrongful death claim, you must be able to prove that a duty of care to the decedent existed and that because another party failed to fulfill this duty, the decedent was killed.

Here are some examples of a duty being breached, which causes harm to another person and gives rise to a wrongful death claim.

• A duty of care is owed to the general public by anyone operating a motor vehicle. The operator has an obligation to keep their vehicle under control at all times and to not negligently cause injury to another. If that person does go through a red light and kills the driver of another vehicle, that decedents family may file a wrongful death lawsuit.
• A Doctor owes a duty of care to their patient. If they commit an act of negligence, and cause injury or death to their patient, a wrongful death lawsuit can be filed against them.
• The manufacturer of an automobile owes a duty to provide a safe vehicle which is up to date with modern safety equipment. If an airbag is installed improperly and fails to deploy, that company can be held responsible in a wrongful death lawsuit if the decedent could have been protected and saved had the airbag properly deployed.
• The manufacturer of Advil has a duty to provide a safe medication and container to any person who takes the pill they manufacture. If a customer takes a pill from a container that had poison in it and dies as a result, a wrongful death lawsuit can be filed against the manufacturer of Advil.

How the death was caused does not usually affect the value of a wrongful death lawsuit. However, sometimes, if it can be proven that the death was the result of conduct which was reckless, unusually dangerous, criminal, etc.. In these cases, the value of a wrongful death claim can increase.

Factors in determining the value of a wrongful death lawsuit

Here are factors that need to be considered in valuing a wrongful death claim:

1. Was the death solely the fault of other parties or was the decedent partially at fault as well?
1. Was the decedent's vehicle rear ended while properly stopped at a red light, or was the decedent at a total stop in the middle of a high speed freeway for no apparent reason?
2. Did the airbag deploy improperly and fail to protect the driver, or was the failure due in part to the operator failing to wear his seatbelt?
3. Did the tire blow out because it was manufactured improperly, or because the sidewall was damaged by the operator striking a curb just before the tire blew out?
2. Was the decedent married and did they have any minor dependents?
3. What is the amount of the earnings that will be lost by the decedent due to their death?
1. The value of benefits from work should be included
4. Did the decedent survive and consciously suffer pain for a period of time before they died?
1. How extreme was their pain?
2. How long did their pain last?
5. Funeral and other expenses related to the death and burial of the decedent.
1. Cost of funeral
2. Medical bills incurred to save life

Key factors which can increase the value of a wrongful death claim

Here are some of the factors in a wrongful death claim which can increase its value:

• The decedent suffered from conscious pain which was caused by the negligent act of the person causing the death
• Minor children were supported by the decedent
• The decedent died from another person's criminal act such as drunk driving victims
• The decedent died from a dangerous product and it can be proven that the company purposely risked that danger intending to save money on an appropriate safety mechanism
• The insurance company acts in bad faith, failing to responsibly handle claim
• A doctor is proven to have changed medical records in order to protect themselves from a medical malpractice lawsuit
• Having the wrongful death claim handled by an assertive, experienced, effective wrongful death lawyer who knows how to maximize the value of these claims.

Key factors which can decrease the value of a wrongful death claim

Here are some factors in a wrongful death claim which can decrease its value

• Inadequate insurance coverage to compensate an estate for the full value of it's claim
• The decedent had a medical condition that would have shortened their life even if this accident resulting from negligence never occurred
• The decedent suffered no conscious pain and suffering
• The decedent was partially at fault for causing the accident that lead to their death
• The decedent was already disabled and not working when they were killed in an accident. As a result, they suffered no loss of wages.
• Having the wrongful death claim handled by an attorney who does not have experience at handling these types of claims, or fails to take charge of the claim and handle it assertively and effectively

Speak with a Wrongful Death Lawyer

If your loved one died due to someone else's negligence, meet with an experienced wrongful death lawyer to learn more about how the claim should be handled, what it's potential value is, how long it will take to pursue, etc. The sooner you retain a pa wrongful death lawyer to review the circumstances surrounding the loss of your loved one, the fresher the evidence in their case will be.

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