Wrongful death cases are unique, and the law provides specific rules and procedures to govern these cases. Although a wrongful death case can arise from numerous circumstances, such as a car accident, truck collision, medical malpractice, nursing home neglect, or workplace injury, the common factor is negligence or wrongful conduct that causes death to another person. Thismust be proven. The wrongdoer can either be an individual, a corporation, or other business interest. They are typically represented by insurance companies.

How Does the Law Value A Wrongful Death?

The law does allow survivors to pursue their legal remedies. Any amounts sought in a wrongful death case are known as "damages", and damages are typically divided into two groups:

First are economic damages, comprised of medical expenses, funeral expenses, and lost income of the deceased victim. Of these, the lost income portion is often the greatest, especially where the victim was the provider for a family and is leaving a surviving spouse or children. In these cases, our attorneys are required to work closely with economic experts and/or vocational experts to correctly predict the victim’s lost future earnings and compute the true economic loss suffered by the survivors. This can be tremendous, as the deceased person’s future earnings are often predicted over the course of his or her anticipated life expectancy. Thus, a highly paid business executive who is killed in the height of a career may leave millions in lost future income that would have supported a surviving spouse and children.

Second are the devastating emotional damages experienced by survivors. These include the obvious grief, anguish, sorrow and the loss of the deceased victim’s companionship which is felt by the surviving family members.

Third, but not as common, are punitive damages. This type of damage recovery is usually reserved for cases involving the worst type of wrongdoing, such as drunk driving or intentional wrongdoing. Under Virginia law, punitive damages are intended to serve as additional compensation to injured victims in order to punish the wrondoer and prevent similar conduct in the future. Although relatively rare in Virginia, punitive damages may be recoverable in any specific case and play a valuable role to society in deterring the worst forms of conduct.

The Value of a Case is Specific To That Case.

Although the law allows recovery for these economic and emotional damages, the law wisely does not step in to place a “price” or value on this highly personal form of loss. Instead, the value of any case may ultimately rest with a jury in a courtroom. Therefore, we know that case value can largely depend on the attorney's experience, presentation skills, and trial ability. This holds true whether a case is tried before a jury or settled with an insurance company out of court. As with any other pursuit, an experienced attorney can make a difference.

Web Resources for Wrongful Death:

LawDragon
Description: Lawyer Rankings and Legal News

Quick Contact

Dulaney, Lauer & Thomas, LLP
98 Alexandria Pike
Suite 11
Warrenton, VA 20186

Phone: 888-907-2631

DULANEY, LAUER &
THOMAS, LLP

Warrenton Office
98 Alexandria Pike
Suite 11
Warrenton, VA 20186
Toll Free: 888.907.2631
Local: 540.349.2631
Get Directions

Culpeper Office
209 N. West Street
Culpeper, VA 22701
Toll Free: 800.741.1012
Local: 540.825.6046
Get Directions