A loved one’s death always feels deeply wrong to the close family members left behind, but when the death was caused by someone else’s careless, reckless, or wrongful actions, it’s a wrongful death in Texas, according to the state’s civil courts. While adding a complex legal process to the grieving period may seem daunting, with a wrongful death attorney on your side, you can focus on saying goodbye to your loved one.
Call GreeningLaw, P.C., and let a Farmers Branch wrongful death lawyer represent your family’s best interests while assertively pursuing the financial accountability and sense of justice your loved ones deserve.
Why Choose a Farmers Branch Wrongful Death Lawyer From GreeningLaw?
GreeningLaw, P.C. is a Texas law firm dedicated to advocating for injury victims and their families against defendants and powerful insurance companies. With our Farmers Branch personal injury attorneys on your side, you can expect the following:
- Over 40 years of combined experience, knowledge, and resources behind your claim
- A dedication to professionalism and open communication from a board-certified lead attorney
- A law firm with an AV Preeminent® rating from Martindale-Hubbell, to put a well-respected voice behind your case
- A personalized strategy with the goal of maximizing your family’s financial recovery through compelling evidence and a careful calculation of your damages
We offer a free case consultation and contingency-based payment, so your wrongful death attorney works tirelessly for your family, and you pay nothing until after we’ve obtained compensation for you through a settlement or court award for your family’s damages.
When Is It a Wrongful Death In Texas?
Under the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, Section 71.001, the law describes the defendant in a wrongful death claim as follows:
“A person is liable for damages arising from an injury that causes an individual’s death if the injury was caused by the person’s or his agent’s or servant’s wrongful act, neglect, carelessness, unskillfulness, or default.”
In other words, when an individual or business entity acts with careless negligence, recklessness, or intentional wrongdoing and causes a death, they can be held liable for the family’s economic and emotional damages. Common causes of wrongful death in Texas include the following:
- Car accidents
- Truck accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Bicycle accidents
- Property-owner negligence (premises liability cases)
- Medical malpractice
- Nursing home wrongful death
- Birth injuries
If you think you might have a wrongful death claim in Farmers’ Branch, an attorney from GreeningLaw, P.C. is ready to evaluate your case.
Who Can File for Wrongful Death In Texas?
Each state imposes limits on who may file a wrongful death claim against an at-fault party to prevent distant family members from exploiting the death for profit when they don’t face financial impacts. In Texas, only a spouse, parent, or adult child may file for wrongful death. If none of the above files a claim within three months of the death, the decedent’s personal representative may file a claim on behalf of the deceased person’s estate.
The representative is typically the person named as the executor of the decedent’s will, but may be a family member named as representative by the court if the decedent doesn’t have a will. In these cases, any amount awarded in the claim is distributed to the family according to the terms of the will or the state’s intestacy laws for those who die without a will.
What Can My Family Gain From a Wrongful Death Case?
Families who lose a loved one often find their lives disrupted financially as well as emotionally. A sudden death can have especially harsh implications for a family when the decedent was a family provider. A successful wrongful death claim not only brings a sense of justice and closure to grieving family members, but it can also recover the following damages:
- Reimbursement for medical expenses if the decedent received care before their death
- Funeral and burial costs
- Compensation for a family member’s lost wages
- Compensation for lost benefits, such as health insurance and retirement contributions
- Loss of household services
- Compensation for the family’s emotional grief and anguish
- Compensation for a spouse’s loss of companionship and consortium or a parent or child’s care, guidance, and support
Less commonly, a court may award punitive damages to the claimant in a wrongful death claim. Punitive damages serve as a punishment and deterrent for the wrongdoer and are only available when the defendant’s actions were egregiously negligent, with wanton disregard for the safety of others, or intentionally wrongful.
Wrongful death claims proceed independently of any criminal charges in the same case and do not depend on a guilty verdict.
What Should I Do to Help My Case After a Loved One’s Wrongful Death in Farmers Branch?
It can be difficult to think clearly and take purposeful action during the shock and trauma following a loved one’s wrongful death; however, taking the right steps after a wrongful death helps to streamline the claim process and make a more compelling claim for the full amount of compensation available to your family. After someone else’s actions directly cause a loved one’s death, take the following actions:
- After emergency services complete their obligations at the scene, use a cell phone to snap photos of anything relevant to the cause of death, such as the damaged vehicles after a car accident or a broken railing on a staircase after a loved one’s fatal fall
- Keep your loved one’s belongings in a sealed plastic bag
- Request an autopsy and a copy of the medical examiner’s report
- Request a copy of the accident report or police report
- Keep all medical bills, funeral and burial invoices, and receipts from out-of-pocket expenses
- Gather evidence of your loved one’s typical monthly income and benefits
- If you’ve missed work to deal with the loss, ask for an employee’s written statement of your lost work days and print copies of your last three direct deposit income records or pay stubs
Then, call the Farmers Branch wrongful death law firm of GreeningLaw before communicating with the defendant’s insurance company. Then, direct all communication with the defendant and their insurer to your lawyer.
Call the Wrongful Death Lawyer In Farmers Branch
Your loved one has the right to a voice for justice, and your family deserves to work through the grieving period with fewer financial concerns. If you lost a loved one due to someone else’s negligent or wrongful actions, contact GreeningLaw, P.C. online or call to speak to a wrongful death attorney who is ready to help.