Wrongful death claim is a claim against a person or entity who can be held liable for a death. The claim is brought in a civil action, usually by close relatives, as enumerated by statute. In wrongful death cases, survivors are compensated for the harm and losses they have suffered after losing a loved one. We represent families across the nation to demand justice, get them answers, and prevent something like this from happening again to other families.
In order to bring forth a wrongful death lawsuit, several elements must be present: A person's death caused by another person's negligence or by another person's intent to cause the deceased individual harm. These cases claim monetary injuries related to the death for the surviving family members.
What are the elements of a wrongful death lawsuit?
You Need Sufficient Proof of Negligence proving liable party had a certain duty of care owed to the victims. Additionally the party must have breached that duty of care in some manner, and the breach is what led to the accident and injuries that caused the death. Lastly we must prove the death resulted in losses to the surviving family member bringing the case..
The burden of proof during all civil claims in Massachusetts, including wrongful death lawsuits, is a preponderance of the evidence; or more likely than not. This is a lesser burden than in criminal cases which requires beyond a reasonable doubt. The elements of proof are:
These four elements must be true to prove your case, however, there are exceptions. Cases involving strict liability such as a fatal dog attack or defective product incident, for example, have an assumed breach of duty.
You don't pay in unless we win. It's called a contingency agreement. We get paid from the proceeds that we obtain for you. If we agree to take your case, we will pay all of the expenses necessary to prosecute your case. You don't have to reimburse us for those expenses. In some cases these expenses can be a considerable amount - between $50,000 and $100,000 so as you can see if we take your case we assume the risk. We are a deeply invested partner in your case motivated to get you fair and reasonable compensation for your losses.
The compensation in a wrongful death claim is for the deceased's surviving spouse, children, and/or parents and is intended to compensate the for the losses related to the death of their loved one.
Even if there is no surviving spouse, child, or parent, the executor may still seek damages to compensate the estate for the costs of:
Our goal is to make the world safer. Unfortunately, not everyone prioritizes safety. When they don’t, we hold them accountable. By hitting them where it hurts most, their pocketbooks, they are forced to pay attention to safety. That’s how we affect change.
Massachusetts wrongful death statute allows punitive damages if a wrongful death occurred due to “malicious, willful, wanton, or reckless conduct of the defendant or by gross negligence of the defendant.” To be allowed punitive damages, we will have to prove that someone died because of the conduct described. Punitive damages demand change in our society because corporations that refuse to take action to make their operations safer only listen when their bottom line is affected. An apology simply won't do for the losses you've sustained. Inevitably we discover that the loss of your loved one was preventable. Systems should have been in place. Policies should have been followed. Training was not sufficient. Supervision was lacking. Time and time again through the discovery process we unearth numerous ways the tragedy could have been prevented, and yet the corporation chose not to.
Yes. And not just any lawyer. You need a lawyer who has actual trial experience with your type of case. Each case is unique in many ways, but the learning curve takes years. Wrongful death cases are different from other injury cases. There are regulations and laws in place that apply specifically to wrongful death. You don’t learn these laws and regulations overnight. It takes years. I’ve been handling wrongful death cases for over 30 years. I started out my career working for an insurance company. Why is this important? Because I learned the tricks and tactics these companies will use against you. I know the strategies the large insurance companies will employ to avoid paying you at all or pay you as little as possible. I am a lawyer with the experience you need. We have a documented track record in federal and state courts against some of the largest insurance companies and their insurers in the United States. If you lost a member of your family due to a wrongful death, you should speak to our attorney right away to find out your legal options. I will get back to you promptly. The consultation is complimentary.
Wrongful death is the loss of life due to another person or corporation’ s misconduct, negligence or wrongdoing. Essentially someone did something wrong and had a responsibility or duty to protect that person, which led to the death of your loved one. A wrongful death claim is a civil lawsuit that seeks to hold the responsible party accountable for the deceased person’s death. Certain family members in Massachusetts can receive compensation after an executor or administrator of the decedent prevails in a wrongful death lawsuit. Taking leagl action right away will help us preserve the evidence of the wrongdoing.
We will need to file the wrongful death claim within Massachusetts’ current statute of limitations of three years. By missing the statute of limitations, or in other words the time limit to file your case, most courts in Massachusetts will refuse to hear your case and therefore it will be too late.
Once the executor of the estate is assigned, it is important to file within three years of the date of your loved one’s death. If the executor has not been assigned we will help you with this process.
The amount of compensation from a wrongful death case in Massachusetts will depend on a variety of circumstances. Some of the determining factors include the severity of the negligence and even gross negligence, the amount of pain and suffering the decedent incurred prior to their death, and more. Insurance companies will try to diminish the value of the case by basing it on tangible numbers like life expectancy, marital status, and surviving dependent ages. To combat the insurance company's valuation template and "one size fits all" approach, we focus on the behavior of the wrongdoers. Punitive damages are an important factor in getting you justice.
It will cost you nothing to hire our law firm. We work on a contingency basis, meaning we are not paid unless and until we successfully recover compensation for you and your family. Because we specialize in large truck and bus. wrongful death, and serious injury cases, we know what it takes to win. You pay nothing upfront when you hire our firm, so there is no financial burden on you and your family. It does take a commitment to partner with us so that together we can put forth the best possible case. We will guide you through the entire process. Some victims hesitate to call an injury law firm because they fear they cannot afford it. Instead, these people try to take on insurance companies or large corporations on their own. This can make it nearly impossible to spend the time and focus on healing from injuries.
As our client, you are guaranteed:
-> Free, no-obligation case review
--> Full transparency
--> Zero out of pocket costs
--> Pay no retainer fees
--> Protected rights from our start until your case is resolved.
Our firm is will not rest until we recover compensation for you.
Contact us for a free case evaluation. Now is the best time to get started. Often times evidence is not preserved or disappears. The negligent party is working quickly to create plausible deniability. We sit down with you personally to fully understand your case, your loss, your needs, and give you our expert advice. It's time to get you the answers you need.
NSIDER KNOWLEDGE: I worked for an insurance company for years. With my insiders knowledge, I know what they will do before they do. I use my insiders knowledge to get you justice, to get you answers, and to make our workplaces safer.
TEAM APPROACH: While the victims of construction accidents may be in the hospital or God forbid the morgue after a serious accident, the construction company's insurance has sent out its Emergency Response Team. An Emergency Response Team is made up of lawyers, accident reconstructionists and investigators. They are sent to the scene of an accident to gather (or fabricate) evidence that will help the company, not you. By contrast, we utilize our own team of professionals to bring in the expertise needed to properly prosecute your case. We have access to a nationwide group of experts who can be dispatched to the scene to conduct our own investigation and gather information before it disappears.
FOCUS GROUPS: We also conduct jury research focus groups on all our cases. We present your case to a group of people that closely resembles the same kind of people that will make up your jury. By doing these focus groups, we learn the strengths and weaknesses of each and every case, we learn what matters to people about your case, and we learn how to best present your case.
DEMONSTRATIVES: A picture may be worth a thousand words, however 3D models, computer animations, diagrams and scaled props are also valuable tools we utilize in your case to show the jury what and how your injury happened. Studies show that our brain processes and remembers what we see, better than what we hear.
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We help people who have been injured in get justice. Justice most often means compensation for the harms and losses caused be someone else’s negligence, but that’s not all justice can mean.
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