I’m pretty sure you can still remember the December 30 crash on the 405 Freeway where as a result singer Brandy had been charge with a $50M wrongful death lawsuit by the parents of the deceased victim.
A wrongful death lawsuit can't bring the person you love back to life, but it can help you acquire compensation for your loss. In your quest for justice, you must have someone who knows the law and process. You may want to have a wrongful death lawsuit attorney by your side.
This is so because in wrongful death cases, negligence must be proven. And only a wrongful death lawsuit attorney can help you with your case and prove the following four critical components in your claim:
1. The defendant had a duty to the deceased
2. The defendant failed to observe such duty (breach of duty)
3. That the death was caused by the defendant’s breach of duty
4. That the survivors are entitled to damages as a consequence of the loss of a family member
Proving the foregoing elements is not sufficient. The case must be well within the statute of limitations to have a valid claim. The statute of limitations for a wrongful death claim is shorter than that of a personal injury claim.
It seems to me that the law provides longer time within which to file personal injury cases than that of wrongful death cases. Is it because the law favors those who are alive than those who are already dead? It may not be so, but why?
In wrongful death cases, the lawyer is only there as a guide. it is the surviving family of the deceased who can initiate the suit. However, you cannot expect them to jump into filing their claim as they would want to pay their final respects to the deceased. And by the time their mourning and grieving are done, which in most cases would take months, their time to file the suit had already prescribed which even the best wrongful death lawsuit attorney can do nothing about.
The denial of the claim just because it has been filed beyond the statute of limitations is too much for the surviving family to bear. Not only do they have to deal with the loss of a loved one but also they have to face the fact that the offending party walks away without being held responsible. Is it not an added insult to an already injurious situation?
