What is a wrongful death lawsuit?
A Wrongful death lawsuit is a claim against a person who can be held responsible, also known as liable, for another person’s death.
The claim of wrongful death is brought by a civil action, a lawsuit in a civil court of law. Wrongful death lawsuits are most often brought about by a family member or close relative of the individual who passed away.
There is a lot to learn about the workings of wrongful death civil suits and the complexities of the American legal system.
To better make sense of some of the wrongful death lawsuit cases you read here and in the media, today we are sharing five facts about wrongful death lawsuits that may aid your understanding.
- In most common law jurisdictions, there is no legal right to recover civil damages – compensation, for the wrongful death of a person. Of course under common law a deceased person cannot bring their own civil suit. Various jurisdictions have though recognized the right for compensation related to wrongful death and have filled gaps in the writing of statuses in order to apply common law principles to decisions.
- In the United States, a wrongful death suit is a course of action when a person or entity contributes to wrongfully contributes to a person’s death. The details of the statues that can be brought about in these cases vary from state to state.
- One of the most common areas of wrongful death lawsuits is associated with medical errors and/or medical malpractice. This is true not only in the United States but in many countries.
- Another common area of wrongful death suites is traffic accidents. While the number of drunk driving accidents have decreased over the year, distracted driving accidents and associated wrongful death suits have increased with the rise of technology.
- Wrongful death claims are not the same as negligence claims, which are filed by the person who was injured and who is able to explain the negligence themselves unlike in wrongful death cases.
MORE: Family Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against Resort Over Tainted Alcohol
Wrongful death lawyer
There are times where one needs to hire an attorney for a personal injury case. In an absolute worst case, one may need to hire an attorney for a wrongful death suit. If you or a loved one ever need to hire a Palm Beach wrongful death lawyer, then Ms. Morgan McGrath is the lawyer that you are looking.
Wrongful death claims are her specialty, and you are always in the right hands with McGrath. There may be no more hard or stressful time in a family’s life than having to deal with a wrongful death situation in their family. It is during this trying time that you need to be able to count on your South Florida wrongful death lawyer.
