Wrongful death is a tragedy and huge emotional loss for the family of the victim.
A wrongful death case is when a person dies because of someone’s negligence, mal intention, carelessness, or oversight. The circumstances are often could have been prevented in the party who caused the death could take more care. Such deaths are sudden and are a result of either direct nature like a violent crime or indirect nature (for example, the negligence of an employer who did not follow standard safety regulations).
Wrongful death leaves the family with terrible emotional loss, grief, feelings of anger, and, most often, with financial issues.
Finding yourself in such a situation is never easy, which is why you should file a lawsuit against the liable party. The best way to do it is to hire a wrongful death attorney.
Filing a wrongful death lawsuit in Indiana?
The state of Indiana allows you to file a wrongful death lawsuit, and such cases are governed by the “something to lose” doctrine. In other words, if you are filing a lawsuit, you ought to lose something because of the death of the victim. Also, you need to continue losing something after the victim’s death, unless the party responsible for the death is liable.
Indiana law states that wrongful death claims can only be filed by the personal representative of the decedent’s estate. The person in charge of managing the deceased person’s estate, in most cases, is a spouse, child, parent, or sibling.
There is only one exception to this rule, and that is when the victim is a child; in such cases, the parents can file a wrongful death lawsuit (even if they are not in charge of the estate).
In such cases, the parents can file a wrongful death lawsuit even if they are not in charge of the estate. In case the parents are divorced, then the parent who has legal custody will file the lawsuit. If their parental rights are ended, or both parents are dead, the lawsuit will be filed by the child’s legal guardian.
Wrongful death cases must be filed within two years, starting from the date of death. Indiana’s statute of limitations is the same for filing a wrongful death case for a child as well.
Missing the deadline means missing the chance to claim the compensation and hold the defendant liable for the death of your loved one.
Financial and emotional losses
An economic burden is the first thing (after the emotional loss) that the surviving family will face. This is even more harshly felt if the victim was the main earner in the family. Your attorney will explain to you that everything about the death costs like medical and funeral expenses. The non-economic damages are of emotional nature, such as loss of companionship and loss of consortium.
Why are wrongful death cases so complicated?
Wrongful death cases usually require lengthy investigation and research, and you won’t be able to that on your own. This is why you should hire a wrongful death attorney who has experience and knowledge.
Such cases involve insurance companies that will work hard to offer a lower claim. They don’t see your loss with sympathy. Your loved one was only a number, and it is their job to provide less money than you deserve. It is what they do for a living, and you should not take it personally. But, with a competent attorney, you should stand up to the insurer and seek a higher claim.
Your attorney would explain everything to you when it comes to determining the amount of claim you could get.
This is why it is essential to go through the process with the help of the right lawyer. If your lawyer has no experience or skills, they cannot make the right decisions and could lead you to make the wrong steps. This could affect the amount of your claim. Often the finances are beyond important for the families to move on with their lives and cover all the expenses related to the wrongful death.
Knowing what legal step to take next and making the right decisions could be a real challenge when you have lost a loved one.
Our team of attorneys at Rowe and Hamilton offers you help if you have lost a loved one in a wrongful death case.
Our firm has more than twenty-nine years of experience working with wrongful death lawsuits.
Call us today and schedule your first entirely free first case evaluation.
