When someone dies due to another party’s careless actions, the surviving family members can seek justice and compensation through a wrongful death claim or lawsuit. As the family navigates this difficult time, knowing that there is some financial certainty and a path to closure and peace of mind can help ease the burdens of the loss.
A Lighthouse Point wrongful death lawyer at Ged Lawyers is here for you. We can discuss your case during a free case review and help you determine if a wrongful death claim is a viable option for your family.
Our Lighthouse Point Wrongful Death Attorneys Fight for Families
We pride ourselves on providing compassionate legal service. Our attorneys are motivated to help families put their lives back together after a tragic loss. After more than 20 years serving injury victims and surviving family members, we’ve seen up close the way negligent and reckless actions can wreak havoc on families and alter the course of so many lives.
If our Lighthouse Point wrongful death attorneys take your case, we get to know you, learn your loved one’s story, and drive toward results. We’re not just fighting for money—we’re fighting for justice.
Affording Our Wrongful Death Lawyer in Lighthouse Point, FL
You can absolutely afford a wrongful death lawyer at our firm because we don’t charge you up front for our service. We work on contingency, which means our attorneys only receive a payment if they win your case.
We’ll discuss the details of our no-win, no-fee agreement during your free consultation. We encourage you to act fast since the statute of limitations for wrongful death in Florida is generally just two years from the date of death.
What Damages Does a Wrongful Death Claim Include?
Per Florida Statutes § 768.21, the family of the deceased can recover the losses they’ve suffered due to the death of their loved one. These losses may include economic losses and non-economic losses, such as:
- Funeral and burial costs
- Medical care costs
- Lost financial support
- Lost services
- Loss of companionship of a spouse
- Loss of parental companionship, guidance, or instruction
- Loss of protection
- Emotional pain and suffering
A Florida wrongful death lawyer at our firm can help you seek damages for all your viable losses. It’s our goal to provide as much financial stability to your family as we can during this uncertain time.
Who May File a Wrongful Death Lawsuit in Lighthouse Point, Florida?
In Florida, only the personal representative may bring a wrongful death action against a defendant. A personal representative is in charge of ensuring the decedent’s final wishes are carried out, along with distributing their assets among beneficiaries and paying off any debt that remains.
This person can be a spouse, sibling, child, parent, friend, or attorney as long as they are legally appointed.
Beneficiaries to a Wrongful Death Lawsuit
The compensation recovered from a wrongful death claim or lawsuit is distributed amongst the decedent’s legal beneficiaries. Florida recognizes the following as beneficiaries:
- Spouse
- Children
- Parents
- Siblings (blood or adoptive)
- Any blood relative who was financially dependent on the decedent
Wrongful Death Cases Explained
Florida Statutes § 768.19 defines a wrongful death as one that occurs due to the wrongful acts, negligence, default, or breach of contract or warranty of another person. It’s important to understand which cause of action forms the foundation of your claim to build a successful wrongful death case.
Our wrongful death lawyers serving Lighthouse Point, FL, will look for one of the following:
Negligence
Negligence is the failure to meet the standard of reasonable care. It can often be called “carelessness” and is not intentional. As an example, a doctor who forgets to check a patient’s vitals prior to administering a heart medication meets this definition. However unintentional, the doctor’s actions violated the standard of care he was supposed to provide; therefore, he was negligent.
Wrongful Acts
Wrongful acts are any action, error, misstatement, or omission in violation of the law. It encompasses intentional illegal or immoral acts. The type of wrongful act may vary. Sometimes a person may intend to kill another person.
Other times, harming someone else may be an unintended consequence of wrongdoing, such as when a robber accidentally hits a pedestrian in his car while trying to flee the scene. Still, at other times, harm may be intended, but death is not. An example might be a fight outside a nightclub where one party causes the other to hit his head on the pavement, killing him.
Default
Default is a cause of action predicated on the failure of the defending party to fulfill their obligations. If a security guard hears gunshots outside a hotel while in the middle of a phone conversation and, instead of investigating, continues that conversation for another several minutes before going to check it out, he has defaulted on his obligation.
Now, suppose he later discovers that a patron was shot and bled out at the scene but may have lived if she had received timely medical attention. The patron suffered a wrongful death by default.
Breach of Contract or Warranty
When one party breaks a contract and this breach leads to the death of the other party in a contract or to a third-party beneficiary of that contract, the party in breach may be held accountable for wrongful death.
Breach of contract or warranty deals with written agreements as well as implied warranties. That means purchasing toxic mushrooms sold as safe for consumption from the grocery store qualifies even though no written agreement exists. That’s because people buy food from stores with the expectation that it is safe to eat.
Call Ged Lawyers for a Lighthouse Point Wrongful Death Attorney
Regardless of the cause of wrongful death, you can feel confident that Ged Lawyers will do everything possible to get justice for your family and obtain the compensation you deserve. Call us today for a free consultation with a Lighthouse Point wrongful death lawyer.
