Understanding Wrongful Death
I’m Ed Smith, a Vallejo wrongful death lawyer. When someone loses their life, it is always a somber occasion. However, there are particular circumstances that can mean that the incident should be investigated as a case of wrongful death. Understanding what constitutes a wrongful death scenario is important. Learn more about this below.
Essential Pieces of a Wrongful Death Case
The first thing that many people ask is, “what is wrongful death?” Wrongful death is essentially when an individual passes away because of the negligent behavior or misconduct of another party. The necessary components of wrongful death are relatively simple.
The Death of a Human Being: for a wrongful death case to exist a person must have passed away.
The Negligence of Intent: Once the passing away of an individual has been established, it’s important to identify the circumstances that caused the person’s catastrophic injury and, ultimately, death. If the actions of somebody else directly led to the passing of the individual, the case could possibly be labeled a wrongful death case.
Also, if an individual’s negligent behavior led to the death of another, it can also be called wrongful death. Negligent behavior can be characterized by both actions and inactions which can includes things like the lack of proper supervision, lack of proper training, inadequate safety measures, and many other situations.
Examples of Wrongful Death
There exists a wide variety of situations that can leave people with traumatic injuries resulting in wrongful death. A few of the more common situations include:
Auto accidents: While certain car accidents may be unavoidable, there are many situations in which a guilty party can be held responsible for an auto accident and injuries and damages related to it. Cases of drunk driving, reckless driving, driving while texting, and disobeying traffic laws like speed limits can all serve as the basis for calling an auto accident fatality a wrongful death.
Occupational Exposure: Many individuals are injured at their jobs for reasons that their company should have foreseen. These reasons include things like inadequate safety procedures, product liability problems, inadequate or neglectful training, and poorly maintained equipment.
Medical Malpractice: When patients go to their doctor, they rightly expect that their medical issues will be professionally treated. However, when doctors make mistakes of negligence like surgical mistakes, pharmacological mistakes, or syringe swaps, the situation is often a case of medical malpractice leading to wrongful death.
Damages Recoverable
When someone dies because of the negligent actions or inactions of other parties, their families and dependents are often able to recover for a wide variety of damages related to the death. Such damages are not always obvious and can include emotional damages such as loss of consortium and loss of parental guidance.
Other types of recoverable damages include loss of future financial support, funeral costs, and medical expenses incurred in attempted life-saving procedures.
More From Ed Smith, Wrongful Death Lawyer in Vallejo ~
Vallejo Wrongful Death Lawyer
I’m Ed Smith, a Vallejo wrongful death lawyer. If you know someone who has lost their life because of another party’s negligence, call (707) 564-1900 for free, friendly advice. AutoAccident.com and (800) 404-5400, are also ways to get in touch with me.
For over 35 years, I’ve helped Vallejo area residents dealing with wrongful death and personal injury.
My practice has been reviewed by my clients on these sites: Google Avvo, and Yelp.
I’m in the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, the only U.S. forum for trial attorneys who’ve won or settled cases worth more than one million dollars.
See my Previous Verdicts and Settlements.
AutoAccident.com is Northern CA’s leading site for current blogs and info about personal injury law and auto accidents.
pic: “seattle – Lake View Cemetery – flowers on grave 01” by Joe Mabel under CC A-SA3.0U
Final Photo: Edward A Smith, a wrongful death lawyer in Vallejo
:ms [cs 678] cv