Wrongful death is never a thing that you’re prepared to deal with. These fatal accidents that result in the death of your family member or loved one leave you hollow. This is where you feel that life is unfair. A lot of people start to lose hope just because they do not have the correct legal as well as emotional guidance. This is where you should seek the assistance of a wrongful death lawyer right away.
1. Proving Negligence Is The First Step
Yes, proving negligence is the first step in a wrongful death claim because you are entitled to compensation. You and your family need to move forward and the only way to do that is to claim the rightful damages that you are entitled to. You will have to prove negligence to be able to prove the liability of the party at fault. You need to establish a few elements that can prove that the defendant was responsible for the death of your loved one/ family member.
2. Understanding Negligence In Your Wrongful Death Case
- The party who is at fault had a duty of care to the victim which he/she failed to perform
- There was a breach of this duty by the party at fault which resulted in non-performance of this responsibility
- The party at fault was not able to display responsible actions which resulted directly in the death of the victi
3. Duty Of Care And It’s Importance
As mentioned above, there is a duty of care that the party at fault should have performed to avoid that accident. The injury that led to the death of your loved one could have been prevented had the party performed their duty of care and prevented the surrounding circumstances from becoming hostile to the victim.
4. The Eventual Breach Of Duty Of Care
Their inability to perform their duty of care resulted in a direct breach. This is what is meant by breach of duty of care. For example, if a driver is not able to pay attention to the people around them including other vehicles, pedestrians, and everyone who uses the road, this is a breach of duty of care on their part.
5. Establishing Causation
This is another step that you will have to perform to prove the negligence of the body at fault. This is where you will establish that the breach caused direct harm to the victim and led to their death. It is better to reach out to a wrongful death lawyer so that he can review the report on the accident including medical records and other evidence to come up with a strong argument.
6. Damages Suffered
You might be thinking only in one direction when you start calculating your damages. Get in touch with your attorney to understand what all your damages comprise. In most negligence claims, the death of your loved one is only the beginning. Your damages comprise your financial and emotional traumas that resulted from the passing of your loved one. These can be your:
- Medical expenses
- Loss of earnings
- Funeral costs
- Pain emotional trauma and suffering
You must take all of these factors into account when deciding upon a final amount for your compensation.
7. Wrongful Death Is A Civil Case, Predominantly
What a lot of people do not know is that a wrongful death claim is basically a civil lawsuit. It is primarily carried out for monetary damages. A civil suit is different from a criminal case. When you talk about criminal charges, they usually result in a form of punishment for the defendant. This could be a fine, penalty, or impressment. Criminal prosecution is not going to award you any damages. You can only obtain damages or compensation if you go for a civil lawsuit.
8. Essential Parties Do A Wrongful Death Case
If you are the person bringing in a wrongful death claim, you will be the plaintiff. You can be a close family member or a blood relative of the victim. You can also be a representative of the heirs of the diseased. If there was a will drafted by the deceased person, a personal representative of the estate can also file a lawsuit. The person against whom the lawsuit is being brought is the defendant.
In The End
It is never a good idea to deal with all these legal complications on your own. There is a lot that is going to confuse and overwhelm you. You must seek appropriate and adequate legal help if you find yourself in such a situation.
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