A loved one killed in a tragic accident is every family’s worst nightmare. A lawsuit is probably the last thing on your mind in these circumstances. Even if no criminal charges have been filed against the individual who caused your loved one’s death, you may be eligible to obtain damages to recompense you for your loss.
In a wrongful death lawsuit, you must show that someone else was to blame for your loved one’s death. It might have happened in a variety of ways, including a vehicle accident, a hazardous work environment, or poor medical treatment. Regardless of how it happened, the ultimate effect was the same: someone died as a result of someone else doing or failing to do what they were expected to do. A wrongful death attorney in Long Beach CA can help you determine if you have a case.
Wrongful death compensation
The amount of compensation you receive in a wrongful death case is determined by the circumstances of your case. Damages, on the other hand, are divided into three categories: economic, non-economic, and punitive. A wrongful death attorney in Long Beach CA can help determine what your compensation should be.
Economic losses
Any monetary losses that may be demonstrated are referred to as economic damages. Medical bills, burial expenditures, and legal fees are examples of immediate costs associated with a loved one’s death. It usually includes income lost as a result of the death of a family member; this calculation would involve taking the person’s income at the time of the accident and multiplying it by the average working life and other factors to arrive at an amount that represents what he or she would have earned in wages.
Basic living expenditures, such as mortgage payments and money to pay bills, are frequently included in economic damages. This enables survivors maintain the same financial situation as before the unfortunate death.
Non-economic losses
Because they do not include defined amounts, non-economic losses are significantly more difficult to demonstrate than economic damages (such as the average monthly bills or yearly income). Intangible losses like as pain and suffering, mental agony, sadness, loss of companionship, and loss of consortium are included in this figure.
Because they are more difficult to establish, they are frequently the topic of litigation: how can you place a monetary value on the amount of pain a person has experienced? A skilled wrongful death attorney in Long Beach CA can help you put a monetary value on the loss you’ve suffered.
Punitive damages
Punitive damages are intended to penalize the party that caused the accident and dissuade others from repeating the mistake. These losses are uncommon, because they are frequently the result of conduct that is more than just negligent. Punitive damages, for example, may not be granted in a vehicle accident where a parent was distracted by a screaming kid (simple negligence), but they may be paid in a car accident when the driver was driving through the streets filming himself.
It is the second scenario that the legal system seeks to avoid — and which judges and juries frequently punish by awarding punitive damages. Your wrongful death attorney in Long Beach CA will analyze the facts of your case with you to see whether punitive damages are an option.
Please know that you are not alone if a loved one has been killed in an accident, and that support is available. Our attorneys at The Law Offices of Larry H. Parker are experienced in all sorts of personal injury matters, including wrongful death situations. To book a no-obligation, no-cost consultation, call 800-333-0000 or email now.
