Why do families of wrongful death victims need legal help?

The tragic death of a family member or a close one can be extremely painful and life changing. A death caused by the wrongful act and negligence of someone else is even more painful, because your loved one was taken away from you without any fault of his/ her own. When the price of someone else’s carelessness is your loved one’s life, it is extremely disturbing and sad.

Families of wrongful death victims need legal help to ensure that the perpetrators behind the tragic event causing your loved one’s death, be held accountable and responsible for what they’ve done. It is also important to take legal help because the case of wrongful death will be dealt in two courts, which are civil and criminal court.

• The civil court will deal with getting you a compensation from the accused for all the financial and emotional harm that he/ she has caused the family of the deceased. You will be represented by a wrongful death attorney who will file the claim, collect and present all the evidence required by the insurance company and the court, to prove the accused at fault, so that you can be given monetary compensation for your tragic loss.
• The criminal court will prosecute the accused with criminal charges for the death of an individual. Factors like intent will be brought into the court and the prosecutor will charge the accused with faults to get him/ her punishment in the form of imprisonment, community service, probation etc.  

It is also important to understand who will be considered eligible by the court in the case of compensation for wrongful death. Only close family members like the deceased person’s spouse, child or parents will be considered eligible to file for claim in the civil court.

The passing away of a close one is very emotionally draining and confusing. At a time when you are grieving your loss, it is extremely difficult to be able to think and plan the court case. It is always better to hire a wrongful death attorney and let them take care of all the responsibilities involving the civil and criminal court case.

You should ensure that you file your claim before the Statute of Limitations time period. You must check with the lawyer and the law of your state to find out the fixed time period within which you must file the claim case. You will not be able to file the case in either courts if the time period has run out. So while you are dealing with your loss, hire a wrongful death attorney to handle all the court matters correctly, so that you do not have to bear another loss of compensation.

There are many kinds of cases that qualify as wrongful death cases. These would include cases relating to motor vehicle crashes or trucks, cars, bikes, buses and other road accidents. Medical malpractice and medical negligence are also a part of wrongful death cases. Accidents at the workplace like accidents at a construction site due to work safety negligence will also qualify for these. If the products that you use are defective or dangerous and caused a death, then that would qualify as wrongful death as well. These are common examples of wrongful death cases, there are many other cases that fall under the umbrella of wrongful death cases. If you feel that the death of your close one was a wrongful death, then you must consult a wrongful death attorney to discuss the details of the case.

Conclusion

While these cases cannot take away the grief and sadness that is caused by the death of your loved one, it will at least be able to help financially in the deceased family’s tragic situation. It is also important to file these cases on behalf of the deceased to ensure that the perpetrator does not repeat these and there’s law and order in the society. So, even in time of grief, ensure that you get legal help for fair and appropriate action against the perpetrator.