What Is Wrongful Death?
Under Indiana law, a wrongful death is caused by the wrongful act or omission of another person or entity. The law allows the filing of a wrongful death claim if the decedent might have filed a personal injury lawsuit had they survived. Since they are no longer here to file a personal injury lawsuit, another party can file a wrongful death claim on their behalf.
Many different situations can lead to a wrongful death claim, such as:
- Incidents arising from negligence, such as an auto collision
- Medical malpractice
- Intentional acts such as crimes
For example, suppose a patient is given too much of one medication and dies as a result. A doctor, nurse, or pharmacist caused their death. Maybe someone is in a car accident, and the airbag fails to inflate properly, causing their death. Then, the auto or part manufacturer can be liable for their death.
In these cases, the victims might have pursued legal action if they had suffered an injury but did not die. As such, family members can now file a wrongful death claim instead.
What if the State Files Criminal Charges for the Death?
Even if another party faces criminal charges for causing the circumstances leading to the death, they can still be held liable in civil court. A criminal case and a civil case will run separately from each other, although the outcome of a criminal case can impact that of a civil lawsuit.
However, criminal and civil cases are quite different. In a civil case, the other party’s liability results in financial compensation, also known as damages. The court can order the liable party to pay damages to the survivors of the deceased individual. The court can order prison time, fines, probation, and community service in a criminal case.
In a criminal case, the prosecution must establish the accused person’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. On the other hand, for a civil lawsuit, the plaintiff must prove liability by a preponderance of the evidence—in other words, the defendant’s negligence more likely than not caused the death.
The Five Elements in a Wrongful Death Claim
Our experienced Hammond wrongful death attorneys know how to establish:
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The death of your loved one
1 -
The wrongful or negligent conduct of the at-fault party caused the death
2 -
The decedent might have pursued a personal injury claim for their losses if their death had not occurred
3 -
One or more living people, such as a spouse or children, suffered a loss as the result of the death
4 -
Recoverable damages for the decedent’s estate
5
Common Wrongful Death Damages
Families incur the emotional toll of losing a loved one and face added expenses, a lack of financial support, and hassles. These families have the right to hire a personal injury attorney to help them pursue a death claim and survival actions against the person or party who is liable for the fatal injuries.
Wrongful death lawsuit settlements typically include damages for:
- Survival: Money survivors seek to recover for debts related to the decedent’s care before their death and their funerals. These are quite similar to damages awarded in a personal injury lawsuit but with the cost incurred with the final disposition of the decedent’s body.
- Loss: Loss of the decedent as a financial or care provider for the family. It might include damages for lost income, insurance benefits, contributions for maintaining the household, and even the lack of their comfort and affection as a spouse and guidance as a parent.
In a wrongful death case, damages or losses can be economic and non-economic. Economic damages are paid to the deceased person’s family members or representatives to cover the expenses associated with their death.
Potential economic damages in wrongful death claims include:
- Income and other earnings that the decedent should likely have earned if they had lived
- Benefits no longer available as a result of the death—for example, as life insurance
- Funeral and burial expenses
Non-economic damages aim to compensate the deceased individual’s family for the intangible losses they incurred as a result of their loved one’s death.
These damages can compensate family members for their:
- Grief
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of companionship
- Loss of consortium
- Emotional distress
- Mental anguish
While no two wrongful death cases are identical, these are commonly claimed damages in most wrongful death cases. Our Hammond wrongful death lawyers can ensure that you receive fair compensation for them.
What Is the Statute of Limitations for an Indiana Wrongful Death Claim?
Most Indiana wrongful death claims need to begin within two years of the deceased’s death. However, exceptions to this crucial deadline may give you considerably less time to file a lawsuit, so don’t delay. Allowing this deadline to pass without filing a wrongful death claim will void possible financial recovery for your family.
The Value of Your Claim
A lawyer knows what your injury claim is truly worth. They have experience handling cases just like yours. They will also have access to medical and financial experts to assess your claim and help calculate the full damages you should receive.
The Legal Process
An experienced attorney fully understands the often-complex wrongful death legal process. It’s essential to have an attorney who knows which legal documents to file, how to correctly complete legal forms, and the applicable statute of limitations or filing deadline for your specific case.
Increasing the Odds
Representation from a seasoned attorney will improve your odds of receiving fair compensation for your wrongful death claim. Going up against large insurance carriers is never easy. However, doing so without a lawyer reveals to the other side that they don’t need to take your claim seriously. When you hire a wrongful lawyer to be by your side, the insurance carrier and the at-fault party will know that you intend for your claim to succeed. The last thing an insurance company wants is for you to obtain legal representation to assist with your case. It’s also precisely why it should be your first step after losing a loved one under wrongful death circumstances.
No Upfront Fees
Most wrongful death attorneys agree to work on cases based on contingency fees. As such, they won’t get paid for their services unless they obtain the compensation you deserve. This motivates attorneys to win your case so they can also get paid and reimbursed for the legal fees and expenses they fronted. Once they obtain compensation on your behalf, they take their fees from that. If they never obtain compensation, you don’t have to pay them.
Help With Litigation
Although most personal injury cases, including those for wrongful death, settle long before going to trial, not all do. In the event that yours doesn’t, with an attorney on your side, you’ll be ready to take the case to trial. At Midwest Injury Lawyers, we will invest our time, effort, and resources into your wrongful death claim so that we are well-versed in every detail involved. When the opposition knows that we are ready and willing to take the case to trial and have built a strong case on your behalf, we often receive better initial settlement offers
Hammond Wrongful Death FAQs
The deceased person’s family members have the right to file a wrongful death lawsuit in some states, including Indiana. Typically, this is the decedent’s spouse or a child.
Injuries are the leading cause of death for those between the ages of one and 44. Every year, nearly 225,000 Americans die from unintentional injury. That’s one person every three minutes. The costs associated with fatal injuries typically exceed $214 billion annually. Unintentional injury deaths are the third leading cause of death in this country.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports the most common fatal accidents in recent years:
- Unintentional fall deaths: 44,686 or 13.5 per 100,000 people
- Motor vehicle traffic deaths: 45,404 or 13.7 per 100,000 people
- Unintentional poisoning deaths: 102,001or 30.7 per 100,000 people
Other causes of preventable fatal accidents include:
- Drowning
- Fires and burns
- Falls
- Pedestrian accidents
- Bicycle accidents
- Work accidents
Wrongful death claims, like other personal injury claims, can vary in value. Many factors will determine how much you can settle a claim for or if it will need to go before a jury.
These factors include:
- The at-fault party and the limits of any applicable insurance policies they have
- The types and amounts of damages suffered by your family members and the deceased estate
- If there were multiple parties at-fault for the wrongful death
- How soon you want to settle your claim
- The strength of the evidence in the case
When you call our law firm for help, we can provide you with an estimate of what your claim might be worth. We then go to work to maximize your compensation in any way we can.
Our proven track record of settlements for the family members in wrongful death claims shows how seriously we take these claims and how hard we work to get our clients what they deserve. No amount of money can bring your loved one back, but having a financial safety net and the ability to pay any related bills can help.
Did Your Loved One Suffer a Wrongful Death? Contact Midwest Injury Lawyers Today for Help
Please accept our deepest condolences if you have recently lost a loved one. We know that this is a difficult time. We strive to be here for you, helping you however we can.
If the circumstances of your loved one’s death suggest another party negligently caused it, our Hammond wrongful death lawyers want to speak with you. We can help you determine if you have a valid wrongful death case and, if so, what steps you should take next as you seek justice for your family member. Reach out to a Hammond personal injury lawyer.
Learn more by scheduling your no-obligation case consultation with Midwest Injury Lawyers today. Contact us by phone at (219) 200-0151 or online.
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Midwest Injury Lawyers – Hammond Office
2901 Carlson Drive Suite 363,
Hammond, IN 46323
Phone: (219) 200-0151
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