When you lose a loved one unexpectedly, you might go through a range of emotions. One of these might be anger if the death was the result of a person’s negligence. When this happens, you might feel compelled to avenge the death. You can’t just fly off the handle and act out of sorts. Instead, you’ll do better launching a legal action against them in the form of a wrongful death lawsuit.
A wrongful death lawsuit seeks to hold the liable party accountable for the financial damages that you suffer because of your loved one’s passing. There are specific elements that must be present if you are going to do this.
First, your loved one has to be a human. Next, there must be negligence or an intent to harm present. There must be monetary damages that are a direct result of your loss. Finally, your loved one’s estate must have a personal representative or administrator in place.
Many people don’t want to think about the possibility of legal action when they lose a loved one; however, you can attempt to get money for the medical care they received and for a host of other damage types. Putting together one of these cases can be a challenge, so you have to ensure that you have everything in place before you file.
When you file a wrongful death claim, there are three primary options. Either you are going to get an award, or you won’t. You might go to trial, or the case might settle. No matter what, you can take this time to evaluate the possibilities and make your decisions based on that information.