What Can Be Covered in a Wrongful Death Lawsuit
If someone dies and it is the responsibility of another person, the survivors may choose to claim a wrongful death lawsuit. This lawsuit is available to the survivors as a way to compensate for the loss of that person in their lives. This loss is emotional but can also be financial. The family might be struggling to pay off funeral expenses, medical bills, or other related debts.
It’s possible to collect damages for a range of economic and noneconomic sources. Loss of income, inheritance, medical and funeral expenses, as well as emotional trauma can be included in damage claims. You can also include lawyer’s fees in the amount of the claim.
The people who can sue for wrongful death varies state to state. In Florida, the people who can sue for wrongful death are limited. The deceased’s parents, children, spouse, or related dependents. The person in charge of the estate can also sue.
Different categories of person have different limitations to what they can claim. For example, children under the age of twenty-five are entitled to extra benefits and are able to make claims for emotional damage as well as the expected lost support and services. Children over twenty-five, if there is a surviving spouse, cannot claim these things. Lawsuits involving medical negligence also has specific limitations.
Parents, as well as suing for lost support and emotional damage, may also sue for support of their children and their children’s financial futures.
Wrongful death lawsuits have few limitations on who can be sued. Various entities, such as companies or government agencies, as well as individuals or employees, can be filed against in this type of lawsuit. In one death, you can file against a number of parties. For example, if someone is killed by a broken electrical wire, you could sue the electric company, the employee who last worked on that wire, the person who designed the location of the wire, and many other creative possibilities.
In special circumstances, some agencies and individuals are not allowed to be sued for wrongful death. For example, there are certain product liability cases that cannot be involved in a wrongful death lawsuit.
