Dealing with the death of a loved one may be one of life’s most difficult experiences. When a family member dies as a result of someone else’s negligence or misconduct, the mourning period becomes much more difficult.
When a loved one passes away suddenly, it may be emotionally and financially painful. In certain situations, you and your family may have the legal right to file a wrongful death case and get the closure and financial recompense to which you are entitled. Marc Brown Law Firm’s personal injury lawyers in Georgia can help you.
What Is Wrongful Death?
A wrongful death occurs when a person is killed or dies as a result of another party’s negligence or wrongdoing. Wrongful death is explained in Georgia Code Title 51, Chapter 4 as a death caused by the criminal, reckless, negligent, or deliberate conduct of one person or entity. Certain persons can file a wrongful death claim if the events leading up to the death were suspicious – that is, if there are grounds to assume the death was caused by the fault of a specific party. Wrongful death claims are similar to personal injury claims; however, the victim died as a result of the injuries.
Common Causes of Wrongful Death Claims In Georgia
When the circumstances of a death could have allowed the decedent to file a personal injury claim if they’d survived their injury, then a family member in Georgia may file a wrongful death claim against the at-fault party. Wrongful death claims typically result from negligence, such as one party’s careless, reckless, or wrongful actions. In other cases, a wrongful death claim may arise from a defective product and may rely on a strategy to establish the manufacturer’s direct liability. A wrongful death case also recovers losses for a victim’s family after an act of intentional violence and proceeds independently from criminal charges in the case.
Common causes of legal wrongful death in Georgia include the following:
- Car accidents
- Commercial truck accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Bicycle accidents
- Workplace fatalities
- Slip and fall accidents
- Crime
- Defective products
- Medical malpractice
- Nursing home abuse
- Acts of criminal violence
A wrongful death claim not only affords family members an opportunity to recover their financial losses but can also bring them a sense of justice for a grievous personal loss.
Who Can File A Wrongful Death Case In Georgia?
To file a wrongful death claim in Georgia, you must be the deceased person’s spouse, adult child, parent, or personal representative of the estate. If the deceased was just your best friend, you will not be able to submit a claim. Any damages collected in a wrongful death case must be transferred to the deceased person’s next of kin via personal representatives. If the deceased named beneficiaries in his or her estate, the representative must execute those directions in good faith and distribute the estate’s assets to those individuals. Should any of the beneficiaries be ineligible for disbursements, most estates will spell out how the inheritance would be distributed.
Filing a Georgia Wrongful Death Claim
Filing a wrongful death claim in Georgia requires careful adherence to laws, time limits, and evidence requirements. Typically, the process begins soon after the wrongful death, when family members begin gathering evidence, such as medical records, a medical examiner’s report, and evidence taken at the scene of the accident or incident. Then, after hiring a Georgia wrongful death attorney, the lawyer does the following:
- Conducts an investigation into all aspects of the death to meet the burden of evidence proving the at-fault party’s liability
- Documents compelling evidence
- Carefully calculates the family’s damages
- Sends their findings to the appropriate insurance company in a demand package
- Represents the family throughout negotiations for a settlement with the insurance company
- Seeks the largest possible settlement, or
- Represents the family member in court if the insurance company undervalues or wrongfully denies the claim and the attorney deems litigation advisable
Most Georgia wrongful death claims are resolved through settlements, but when the insurance company does not offer an acceptable settlement or intentionally delays or wrongfully denies a claim, an attorney will evaluate whether to file a lawsuit and argue the case before the court.
Proving Liability In a Georgia Wrongful Death Case
A successful personal injury case requires compelling evidence of the at-fault party’s legal liability. This means the evidence in the case must meet the following legal standards demonstrating liability:
- The at-fault party owed a duty of general care to the decedent, such as a driver’s duty to follow traffic laws
- They breached the duty of care through negligence
- The breach of duty directly caused the wrongful death
- The family member suffered damages from the loss of their loved one, including economic impacts as well as emotional anguish
An experienced Georgia wrongful death lawyer investigates the accident and makes a strong case proving the responsible party’s liability based on their negligence or wrongdoing.
Georgia Statute Of Limitations For Wrongful Death Claims
In most circumstances, the statute of limitations for wrongful death claims in Georgia is two years from the date of death, according to Ga. Code Ann. 9-3-20 et seq. There are certain exceptions; therefore, if you have any questions, contact our attorneys.
Recoverable Damages In Georgia Wrongful Death Cases
Claimants in Georgia can collect damages in the amount of the entire worth of the decedent’s life without subtracting for any required or personal costs of the decedent had he or she lived, according to Georgia law. The following available damages are intended to compensate the family and the decedent for both tangible and intangible losses:
- Medical expenses
- Lost income for a family member who took time away from work
- Lost earnings for the working years the decedent would have had remaining to them had they not succumbed to their injury
- Loss of care and companionship
- Loss of consortium
- Burial/funeral costs
- The decedent’s pain and suffering up to the date of death
Georgia law generally allocates one-third of the estate for the surviving spouse, with the balance divided among the children. If there is no will and no surviving children, spouse, or parents, the executor of the decedent’s estate may instead file a wrongful death claim. If a settlement is to be split between a surviving spouse and minor children under the age of 18, the minor children’s part of the settlement will be held in the care of the parent or guardian until they reach the age of 18.
In some circumstances, a defendant’s actions are so outrageously negligent or insensitive to the well-being of others that a jury may impose punitive damages to punish them even more. Georgia state law, on the other hand, does not acknowledge or even mention punitive damages under the Wrongful Death Act; thus, Georgia appellate courts have often stated that they will apply the law as rigorously as feasible.
Can My Family Recover Punitive Damages In a Georgia Wrongful Death Claim?
Some states allow punitive damages in wrongful death cases. This is a monetary award to the decedent’s family, intended as punishment and deterrence for the wrongdoer. However, Georgia does not allow plaintiffs to seek punitive damages in wrongful death cases. Instead, the representative of the victim’s estate may seek punitive damages as part of a separate survival action claim. Punitive damages are only appropriate in cases of egregious wrongdoing on the defendant’s part in a survival action case and require “clear and convincing evidence,” which is a higher bar to meet compared to the “preponderance of evidence” in a wrongful death claim.
What are the Challenges In Pursuing a Wrongful Death Claim?
Insurance companies are not on the injury victim’s or family member’s side during a wrongful death claim. Instead, their motive in every case is to protect the company’s profits. This means the insurer’s goals conflict with your goal to obtain the full and fair settlement you deserve. Common challenges that arise in Georgia wrongful death claims include the following:
- The insurance company may try to shift blame to the decedent. Under the state’s modified comparative negligence system, the insurer can subtract the decedent’s percentage of fault from the amount they pay out on the claim
- The insurance adjuster who investigates the accident or incident may deny liability altogether by claiming that the decedent was more than 51% at fault
- Insurance companies often delay progress, ask for redundant paperwork, or fail to return emails and phone calls to keep money gathering interest in their accounts rather than yours, for as long as possible
- The burden of evidence is on the plaintiff, the decedent’s family member or representative, who must prove the at-fault party’s liability through a preponderance of the evidence
- Calculating total damages, including future economic and non-economic losses, requires careful consideration and consultation with financial experts
- Some wrongful death cases require court litigation if the defendant or the insurance company argues against liability or undervalues the claim
A successful wrongful death claim in Georgia requires careful attention to filing details and time limits as well as compelling evidence of causation, liability, and monetary damages.
What to Do After a Loved One’s Wrongful Death
It’s difficult to take purposeful action while suffering the shock and grief of a lost loved one, but taking steps in the immediate aftermath of the trauma or during the months following the accident helps to streamline the claim process through substantial, compelling evidence. After an accident or intentional incident causes a loved one’s death, do the following:
- If possible, use a cell phone camera to take photos of anything relevant to the cause of death at the scene (after calling 911 to summon emergency services)
- Take steps to preserve evidence, such as placing personal items in a sealed plastic bag
- Take notes of your observations at the scene
- Gather eyewitness contact information
- Ask for a full autopsy and obtain a copy of the medical examiner’s report and death certificate
- Obtain copies of the decedent’s most recent medical records, including from their most recent physical examination
- Keep copies of all bills and receipts for medical expenses, funeral expenses, and burial costs
Reach out to a Georgia wrongful death lawyer for representation throughout every step of your claim.
Contact Our Georgia Wrongful Death Attorney
It may be painful to lose a family member due to someone else’s negligence, especially if that individual was a source of support for your family. While no amount of money will compensate for the loss of a loved one, a wrongful death case can aid a family in financial distress.
Contact our Georgia wrongful death lawyer at Marc Brown Law Firm if a family member died as a result of someone else’s negligence.