While we hope you never need a wrongful death lawyer, unfortunate things can happen to anyone. Here are a few different situations you need a lawyer and what you would need to prove your case.
Situations You Might Need A Wrongful Death Lawyer
- Automobile accidents typically involve cars, trucks, motorcycles, and pedestrians that are hit by other vehicles. “In 2019, there were some 12.15 million vehicles involved in crashes in the United States,” coming from Statista. Most accidents (especially fatalities) occur when a driver’s attention is not on the road. If a driver is negligent or impaired, they are risking the lives of others in the surrounding area. They can be liable for the injuries and deaths in an accident they caused.
- Medical malpractice usually occurs when doctors and nurses make mistakes. While they are highly skilled and trusted to give you the best care possible, mistakes happen as they are human. Death from mistakes occurs because the medical professional doesn’t follow protocol, misses something, or even causes an overdose of drugs.
- Product liability from a defective product can cause death. The manufacturing company is usually responsible for this, assuming false advertising or warning labels aren’t also involved. Product liability can only be argued if the product was being used as any reasonable person would use it.
- A few other situations include:
- Homicides
- Workplace Accidents
- Premises Liability
Proving Wrongful Death
To prove your claim, one must prove the person at fault was directly involved with the death. Here are a few items considered:
- Duty of Care – what are considered society standards and/or reasonable actions of what the person is doing? Example: someone not drinking and driving.
- Breach of Duty – the person broke that trust of doing what is reasonable or expected based on society standards. Example: someone drinking and driving.
- Causation – the person directly caused death from their actions. Example: due to intoxication, the driver was driving off the road.
- Damages – what are losses received from the death of the person? Example: medical bill costs, funeral costs, emotional damage, and lost family wages.
Hopefully, this can simplify the current situation you might be going through. The important thing to know is don’t do it alone. Contact us if you have any questions or need any help.
