Consider Filing a Wrongful Death Lawsuit After the Loss of a Loved One

Losing a loved one is never going to be an easy thing. Losing your loved one because of someone else's neglect or actions is going to make that loss a lot harder. If you are in that situation, you have options. One of them is to file a wrongful death lawsuit. There are some criteria to filing one of these lawsuits. 

1. Circumstance of Death

One of the criteria in filing a wrongful death is how your loved one died. Their death has to be directly caused by the negligence or misconduct of another. Negligence can include things like making sure that machinery isn't properly cared for or necessary repairs aren't dealt with. The misconduct of others can include being killed by someone, medical malpractice, and car accidents. One good way to break down this section is if your loved one would have a good personal injury claim against the person causing their death, there is a good chance that you have the grounds for a wrongful death suit. 

2. Standing

Another criterion in filing a wrongful death suit is that you have to have the standing to file the suit. In this case, standing means that you have the right relationship with the deceased. Some states have some variations when it comes to standing, but most of the states have the same basic rules when it comes to standing. You have the standing to file for wrongful death cases of your spouse or life partner and your minor children. If you are the legal guardian of minor children, you have the standing to file on their behalf.

You can also generally file if your child is an adult, but isn't in a relationship with someone else, if they were in a relationship, you may be able to join a suit with their partner. If you aren't sure if you have the legal standing to file a wrongful death suit, you should talk to an attorney who handles these lawsuits. They will be the best people to help you figure out if you have the standing to file a lawsuit because they are going to be familiar with the laws in your particular state. 

If you have lost a loved one, you might be dealing with a lot of grief and pain. You may not be sure what you can do in that situation. Contact a wrongful death attorney to learn how to handle your case.  

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