Lost someone in Riverside because of another person's carelessness? We handle the case so your family can grieve.

Riverside wrongful death lawyers play a crucial role for families. Not only are people looking for ways to help recover from the financial damages from the loss but the personal damages as well. When people are going through the process of grief and trying to keep their family stable and together after a loss, a lawsuit might not seem like the solution.

A lawsuit certainly won’t change the facts of what happened and what your family is experiencing. However, it can help to alleviate some of the pressure when it comes to handling things such as paying the bills and handling any debt left from the deceased. It is one of the ways that families can start to focus on each other rather than dwindling finances and the process of putting the pieces back together.

Damages Involved in Wrongful Death – Victim and Survivor Damages

When you're looking at possible damages for your wrongful death case, you might initially keep it narrowed down to the victim's direct expenses. The things like medical bills, and the funeral expenses that the family had to incur after the death. However, these are only the surface level of economic damages.

Further down from these initial damages, you have what the deceased had brought into their household. When your loved one died, your household may have lost part or even all of its income. That often leaves families scrambling to pay bills and attempting to skate by from month to month. You can claim lost income, lost wages, and lost future wages and benefits as part of a wrongful death claim. With an experienced attorney, you may be able to assess the deceased's skill set and experience to determine what they could have accomplished in their field if not for their accident.

Then there are the non-economic damages, the things you really can't assign a dollar value to—the loss of love, companionship, and maybe specific roles in a person's life. Never again being able to speak to your father, mother, or child. Even the loss of consortium or the loss of a sexual relationship can be present in wrongful death demands.

Who is Allowed to Lead a Wrongful Death Claim?

The people allowed to pursue a wrongful death claim in Riverside only includes the victim’s surviving spouse, a domestic partner, or their children. But in the case that there was not a partner, spouse, or children, then it is possible for a surviving parent to pursue a case. There are even situations when siblings are able to open wrongful death claims, because there are often situations where people are impacted, but not a spouse or child of the deceased.

However, close friends, cousins, aunts, or a similar extended family member cannot lead a wrongful death claim. Within California, the only ones who can open a claim are those listed above, otherwise recognized as the immediate family.

How Do Riverside Wrongful Death Lawyers Handle These Cases?

Of course, wrongful death cases are always a delicate topic to cover because there's so much grief involved and often within the two-year statute of limitations that grief is very fresh. It is imperative that the attorneys identify the responsible party and compile all the evidence against them in a compelling manner. For some, that means determining that person was at-fault for the car accident, and for other cases, it means providing that the property owner was negligent.

After identifying where to file the claim, be it against a property owner, individual, or another entity, they will file a lawsuit. Then moving forward with the lawsuit, they will aim to show that the defendant failed to fulfill their duty of care and that specific damages occurred because of that negligence or carelessness.

Ideally, these cases will resolve peacefully through a reasonable or fair compensation agreement or settlement. However, when the defendant fails to agree to a meaningful settlement amount, the case will move forward to court. In court, both sides will speak about the damages, the incident, and eventually, a jury will determine the outcome.

With these types of cases, you need an attorney that genuinely has your best interest in mind through the entire process. It is one thing to fight for higher compensation, but another to drag the process along when the family wants closure as quickly as possible. Ensure that you have a legal representative who will work with your family, not just for themselves. They should help aid the relief of your financial situation and your grief, and you seek justice.

Car Accidents and Drunk Drivers

The CDC states that on any given day, 29 people within the United States will die of a motor vehicle accident involving alcohol. Within California and Riverside, this is an exceptionally troublesome issue. In 2018, California's Office for Transportation Safety reported that 42% of drivers who died during a crash tested positive for alcohol or other drugs. That information doesn't give insight to the victims involved in these accidents as well, given that drunk drivers are often the ones more likely to survive a crash.

Drunk drivers are, without a doubt, the most frequently negligent parties when it comes to the possibility of causing an untimely death. Car accidents, whether they involve alcohol or not, are the leading cause of death in people under the age of 44.

When Should You Approach Riverside Wrongful Death Lawyers?

It's always best to approach Riverside wrongful death lawyers as soon after the passing as possible. The short statute of limitations within California has made it extremely difficult for families to both take time to grieve and to take decisive legal action. Often times, when two years have passed, families are still not recovered.

With the respectful and courteous attorneys at TORKLAW, you can discuss your case without the pressure to take immediate action. Our team assists the family of the victim through the process at a comfortable speed for them, while reviewing all possible evidence and pushing their claim through to a reasonable settlement or into the courtroom. Contact TORKLAW now.