It is always hard to lose a family member. Usually, when a person passes away, it’s from natural causes. Some people suffer from a debilitating disease only to pass away months or years later. However, there are some cases in which people are killed in a tragic accident. When this happens, their loved ones may have a right to sue for wrongful death. Our Macon injury attorneys meet with clients all too often who have lost a loved one to an accident. Our goal is to handle the legal side of things so they can focus on grieving their loved one.
Your Macon Injury Attorney Doesn’t Need to Prove the Death Was Intentional
Contrary to what you may think, you don’t need to prove intent in a wrongful death case. As long as your wrongful death lawyer in Macon can show that another party was responsible for your loved one’s death, you may have a claim for damages. These cases often involve a tragic accident or a dangerous drug or medical device. They are all tragic. Our job is to help the family members and loved one get justice on behalf of the victim.
Most Wrongful Death Cases Result from an Accident or a Dangerous Product
When people hear the term “wrongful death”, they tend to think that it involves some kind of intentional act on the part of the defendant. The truth is that the only difference between a wrongful death case and a personal injury lawsuit is that the victim died instead of merely being injured. The damages in these cases are very similar to those in a personal injury case. In fact, the legal standard of negligence applies to most of these cases as well.
Despite the connotations associated with wrongful death, most of them involve an accident of some sort. Some of the more common causes for wrongful deaths include the following:
- Motor Vehicle Accidents – Some accidents are much more serious than others. For example, people involved in motorcycle accidents tend to suffer life threatening injuries when compared to a rear-end collision. The same is true for people injured in a tractor trailer accident. The victims in these types of accidents tend to suffer serious bodily injuries which can lead to death. It doesn’t mean the other driver wanted to hurt or kill someone. It just means that the outcome in these cases is much more severe than in ordinary motor vehicle accidents.
- Dangerous Drug Cases – Many class action lawsuits are based on dangerous drugs and medical devices. It’s hard to not pay attention to the numerous television commercials about the latest dangerous drug case. Many of these result in wrongful death lawsuits. If your loved one died due to a dangerous drug or defective medical device, you may have grounds to sue.
- Oil and Gas Accidents – People who work in this industry are at a very high risk of injury. Not only is the work they do dangerous, but they also work with dangerous equipment. The odds of them getting hurt are much higher than other industries. Many of the victims in these accidents pass away.
Regardless of what type of accident your loved one was involved in, your wrongful death lawyer in Macon will work hard to get your family the damages they deserve.
Your Wrongful Death Lawyer in Macon Will Still Have to Prove Negligence
We understand how angry you are about what happened. However, your Macon injury attorney still must prove that the defendant caused your loved one’s death. To do this, they’ll need to prove negligence. In this way, a wrongful death case is no different than an ordinary personal injury lawsuit.
To prove negligence, you must show the following 4 things:
- The defendant owed your loved one a duty of care
- They breached this duty
- Your loved one passed away
- Their death was caused by the defendant’s breach of duty
Obviously, these cases are handled differently. The victims in wrongful death cases are not here to tell their story of what happened. However, the evidence often speaks for itself. Unless something intervened to cause your loved one’s death, it’s hard to blame anything other than the defendant’s actions.
If the Death Was Intentional, Your Macon Injury Attorney Can Demand Punitive Damages
Normally, civil trial judges don’t like to award punitive damages. They reserve these damages for cases in which the defendant needs to be punished. Sometimes, this is the only way for the courts to send a message to people. For example, if a company puts out a product that they know is dangerous, they need to be held accountable. A couple of lawsuits is not nearly enough to deter companies from doing this sort of thing. They figure they can settle a few lawsuits and then continue to sell their product. However, to make sure this doesn’t happen, the judges order these defendants to pay millions of dollars in punitive damages. Sometimes, the plaintiff in these cases don’t even receive these damages. They are often put into special funds to protect victims in the future.
It’s a Good Idea to Sit Down with a Seasoned Wrongful Death Lawyer in Macon Today
If your loved one was killed in an accident, you deserve time to grieve. At the same time, you may have a legal claim against the person who killed them. In fact, there’s a good chance that you can sue them for damages. However, we understand that this isn’t a good time to deal with that sort of thing. The good news is that we can do that for you. One of our wrongful death lawyers in Macon can handle the legal side of things so you can focus on what’s important.
Depending on the facts surrounding your loved one’s death, there may be one or more people liable for damages. The only way to know for sure is to speak with a Macon injury attorney. They can let you know if you have standing to sue. They can also let you know what the case may be worth. Since we offer our clients a free, initial consultation, you don’t have to worry about paying anything upfront. In fact, you pay nothing until we settle your case.
