Chicago witnessed many gun violence and murder cases making it important to learn about the concept of wrongful death and how such cases should be dealt with.
What is the concept of a wrongful death?
Wrongful death is when an individual is killed due to another person’s negligence, willful or misconduct unintentionally. However, there can be a criminal prosecution associated with the fatality, but the same needs to be evaluated by a criminal or a personal injury lawyer. A wrongful death case is a civil action that is different from criminal charges.
How a wrongful death incident comes under a lawsuit?
The wrongful death claim is the one where an individual loses his/her life due to someone else’s negligence. Such lawsuit cases help to attain valid compensation in monetary form. The wrongful death claims are raised against a defendant whose careless actions have resulted in someone’s death.
Here, the law allows the deceased person’s family to file the lawsuit against the unintentional culprit behind the death. Generally speaking, such cases are filed by the Chicago area personal injury lawyer in the court. Therefore, one must collaborate with an experienced lawyer to reap the maximum benefits of the process.
When is the family of a deceased person eligible to file the wrongful death claim?
The wrongful death claim is valid when the victim having a personal injury claim has been killed due to the defendant’s negligent act. Here, the circumstances may vary, including –
- The victim has been killed intentionally
- If the victim has passed away due to some negligence in the medical malpractices
- Any car crash fatalities due to driver’s negligence on the road
No matter the case type, one requires to have an experienced personal injury lawyer by his/her side to deal with the incident’s uncertain formalities.
What needs to be proven?
To hold the defendant liable for the consequences of the wrongful death, the plaintiffs in the lawsuit case should meet the evidence of the deceased person’s survivor. For instance – the defendant ensured to act responsibly for the victim’s overall health, and later s/he breached the duty. This breach or negligence ended up in the death of the deceased person. This makes the defendant guilty to be held for the wrongful death incident.
What are the most common types of damages involved in wrongful death?
There are several categories for the same. This varies from case to case. Some of the common damages include –
- Funeral and burial service expenses
- The pre-death expenses
- Loss of guidance, nurturing, and care
- The overall medical treatment cost beared by the family of the victim
- Loss of inheritance, if any
Quick wrap-up –
A wrongful death may be an unfortunate incident for a party, but the other one loses his/her life forever. Such cases often lead to the court’s situation, where both the parties come up with their own personal injury attorney. To ensure your case to be a stronger one in the eye of the law, make sure you proceed with an experienced lawyer.
