Losing someone close is really tough. The distress and difficulty people feel due to the unexpected death of loved ones is beyond imaginable. So, when people go for wrongful death lawsuits and settlements, we all need to make sure that they get what they deserve.
When someone meets an unexpected death, it’s understandable that his/her family is already in a lot of emotional pain. Planning for a wrongful death settlement at that time is quite hard. That’s why we want to give you a quick guide to wrongful death lawsuits and settlement.
What is a Wrongful Death Claim?
A wrongful death claim is a claim against an individual who is held responsible for someone’s death during an accident. The person is held accountable generally for his negligence.
Now, the settlement is measured by a variety of factors- the bills and expenses caused by death, the damage of the vehicle, the emotional and financial loss the family face. The settlement also depends on comparative negligence which determines to what degree the plaintiff is responsible for the accident and injury.
Common Types of Wrongful Death
Car Accident
Car accidents are the most common cause of wrongful death. In most cases, accidents occur due to the negligence of the drivers. The most common forms of negligence are driving recklessly, crossing the speed limit, taking unnecessary turns, or not paying attention to the front road. The driver can be liable for the death of passersby, passenger of another car, or the passenger of his own car.
Medical Malpractices
Medical malpractices are one of the most common causes of wrongful death. You can file a lawsuit against the doctor, nurse, and the governor’s body of the hospital. Proving medical malpractice is hard because you need concrete proof that the doctor or nurses are not doing their job or provided the wrong medicine or wrong dose.
Death at the Workplace
If an employee or worker dies because of the negligence of the authority, his family can file for wrongful death lawsuit. Fatal injuries occur in sectors that involve risky jobs or heavy manual labour like painting a high rise building. Now the company and employees have an agreement on what would happen if there are any fatalities but one can always file for lawsuit if there is negligence.
Defective product
If someone dies using a defective product, the deceased family can easily sue the manufacturing company for wrongful death. Product liability is a serious issue and that’s why companies use vast amounts of their resources to make sure the safety of their products.
Who Can File A Wrongful Death Lawsuit?
In most states, a personal representative of the estate of the deceased can file a wrongful death lawsuit. The personal representative files the claim for the benefit of deceased children, spouses, or any existing relatives. Courts often appoint a beneficiary as a personal representative of the estate.
How is a Wrongful Death Settlement Determined?
The loss the family faces for their loved one’s death can’t be measured in money. However, we can’t change what has already happened. So the idea of a wrongful death claim is to compensate for the financial loss the family had to face due to their member’s unexpected death. Here’s how the amount of the settlement can be determined-
- The age of the departed person
- The amount of his/her income
- The status of the deceased person’s recent health
- The age and situation of the family’s surviving member
- The medical bill that had been spent on the deceased recovery.
- Funeral cost
- Value of lost benefit
This is just a gross estimate. Every case is different and there is no way to estimate the exact amount without knowing the full scenario.
Final Thought
No one wants to be in a position where they have to file a case after their dear one’s death. The loss is too much to console by money or anything else. But, from a personal injury lawyer’s perspective, I can tell you that filing a claim can be a real help in a situation like this.
If you need to know more about wrongful death settlement Toronto, feel free to join us for one hour free consultancy.
