How a Texas Wrongful Death Lawyer Can Help Ensure Your Recovery for Family Members, or Successfully Defend Against Large Defense Payouts.
Understanding Wrongful Death Law in Texas
If there is ever a shocking news story of a freak accident causing death or death caused by a defective product, it is family members are thought to be without anything other than a family’s spiritual aide and comfort to get through the grieving process. Fortunately, through Texas wrongful death statutes and Texas caselaw, the victim’s loved one, including minors and relatives who may have been close to the victim, do not have to be deprived of access to their day in court.
Unfortunately, there are many ways that claims brought by the surviving family members do not succeed to due often strict procedures put in place to avoid what may be perceived as windfall payments to persons not directly affected by the incident leading to the wrongful death. Yet, either way a person feels about the reason for the wrongful death, it is undisputed that having proper representation can achieve the proper result for either the loved one or defense.
To learn more about the elements that must be proven in the State of Texas in an ordinary wrongful death claim as well as the common ways for wrongful death cases to be disproven and dismissed, it is worth reading further.
What are the Elements of Successful Wrongful Death Lawsuit under Texas Law?
In Texas, on Nolo.com, wrongful death claims allow any victim who could have otherwise been, if living, able to bring a civil wrongful death suit against a person, corporation or city or state to sue on behalf of the decedent.
In Texas, the legislature has created the three most common kinds of wrongful death categories:
- Death of a person caused related to premise liability.
- Birth complications lead to death of the child.
- Negligence, including gross negligence, or omission by another causes death.
Texas Practices and Remedies Code Section 71.001.
This wrongful death lawsuit is special in that it can only be filed by those who have a special relationship to the decedent or decedent’s estate, and the decedent would have been able to file a personal injury claim for injuries sustained but-for the victim’s death.
Three common forms of a wrongful death lawsuit relate to either:
- Negligence that causes death. (e.g. a car accident case or truck accidents)
- Professional negligence (e.g. a patient dies after being substandard treatment by a doctor or nurse)
- Intentional acts (e.g. crimes committed against people)
Having a skilled Texas wrongful death lawyer can paint a picture to a jury that is not only accurate and detailed in every way, but presented in such a way to appeal to either the particular guilty act by the individual or group responsible for preventing the death.
For instance, through pre-litigation, certain negotiations and pleading forms skilled wrongful death trial lawyers routinely to present a case to a court before it reaches a jury, which, depending on the familiarity with the lawyer with the type of injury and precedent supporting recovery, can drastically affect the end-result.
What are the Time Limits and Procedure for Filing Wrongful Death Claim?
According to Nolo.com, it is imperative for a layperson to be familiar with the concept of “statutes of limitations,” which are strict time restrictions that may prevent a claim from ever being filed if not done before the statute runs, or time has run out.
Once the statute of limitations “has run” in Texas, it is too late to bring a case and there is no alternative way of a loved one to pursue justice for their injuries.
According to Texas’ Practice and Remedies code Section 16.003, there is a clear “two-year” time limit that a loved one has in a wrongful death case to bring a claim.
Although that is a rule of thumb, there are of course exceptions that a skilled and seasoned wrongful death lawyer would be able to detect and apply in your case.
According to the concept of “tolling,” as explained by Texas personal injury experts The Francis Firm may apply which a skilled lawyer might raise if any of the following is true:
- Surviving spouse is mentally disabled or incapacitated and hasn’t returned to good health and full capacity yet.
- The defendant’s absence from Texas, until there is a return.
- The loved one related to the victim is a minor, in which case the statute begins to run only after turning 18, giving two years from that date.
Statutes of limitations exist to ensure that evidence remains “fresh” and in the judgment of the courts and legislature claims are more likely to have merit. Another reason is not to inconvenience the responsible party by waiting an unreasonably long time to report the injury when it could have done sooner, especially when evidence proof of injury is stronger, such as changes in, for instance, the conditions that previously were considered dangerous that caused the accident, destruction of evidence or faulty recordkeeping. Texas Practice and Remedies Code Section 16.0045
Common Defenses Helpful in Wrongful Death Claims
According to the Texas wrongful death specialist firms, notably, Donato Brown Pool & Moehlmann, in addition to the statute of limitations, there are common defenses an at-fault driver can assert to minimize or completely avoid liability for deaths caused by another’s negligence or failure to act:
- Contributory/Comparative Negligence
- Assumption of Risk
- Pre-existing Injury
- Disclaimer or Release of Liability Waiver
Commonly vehicle accidents can be defended by invoking the notion that the deceased was partially to blame for the accident, has been fully informed of the risk leading to the accident and disregarded it anyways, had previous questionable behavior that cast doubt on the legitimacy of the current claims alleged against the individual defending against the claim, or have signed documentation to relieve the negligent party at some point before or during the claims filing process, although exceptions may apply even if such documentation was signed.
According to Nolo.com, when the wrongful death occurs as a result of a crime, the issue is not whether someone must serve jail time or a sentence, but only how much, if at all, the person has to pay to a surviving spouse bringing the wrongful death claim.
What makes defending a wrongful death claim particularly challenging can be the lack of a agreement of the standard of proof in the underlying criminal case, of “beyond all reasonable doubt,” that is a very high bar to clear—to “preponderance,” which means more likely than not. As a result, a skilled wrongful death lawyer or law firm would be able to remind the court, trial lawyers bringing suit and jurors involved not to confuse these standards to the expense of the person being sued.
Texas wrongful death law requires a skilled advocate who can represent the deceased or decedent’s estate or person or government actor accused of wrongdoing with the resources and expertise to represent the victim’s surviving family members or the person or group responsible for the death.
Legal Advice: How Much Can Surviving Family Members Expect to Recover for a Wrongful Death Claim?
As in personal injury law, there are nuances in how a victim’s injuries are framed. The distinction between what are called “economic” damages versus “non-economic” damages can shed light on the limits for beneficiaries, or family members, including adopted children, in their quest to seek justice for their lost loved one.
- Economic damages: money that was spent on medical bills or unpaid wages due to loss of being able to work, also known as earning capacity. For instance, in medical malpractice claims, expenses for consultation and treatment by doctors, whose care was subpar.
- Non-economic damages: an abstract and often inflated value a person places on the mental distress and mental anguish suffered after an accident. Per Texas law, there is a cap on the latter category of damages of $250,000 for claims brought against the government, and $500,000 for claims brought against private individuals. Texas Practice and Remedies Code Section 101.023.
According to Nolo.com, damages in wrongful death cases in Texas can’t simply be grouped as the cost of the harm suffered, but more accurately include:
- Potentially thousands of dollars based on not able to work anymore.
- The value of the deceased as a professional counselor or life coach to the survivors.
- Family suffering caused by the death of a loved one.
- Loss of a loved one’s presence.
- Lost property, or loss of inheritance, or land that would have belonged to the family member had the family member lived longer.
Based on the skill and experience of the Texas wrongful death lawyer handling a victim’s case, a client can recover greater amounts if the lawyer stays up to date with the everchanging landscape of not only personal injury law, but negotiating with insurance companies and theories of indemnification and sovereign immunity, that shields certain government actors from liability, with some exceptions. Interestingly, the concept of punitive damages intended to punish the person responsible for the wrongful death may wrongly be asserted against the one defending a claim, and without a skilled wrongful death lawyer, money may be forced to be paid out even when it is not legally owed.
What is the Importance of Hiring a Skilled Wrongful Death Lawyer?
Due to the pervasiveness of accidental death in society, it is important to have a skilled lawyer who can distinguish itself from others in the field. Whereas a common personal injury lawyers may be generally knowledgeable about how to represent a given client, top-notch Houston wrongful death attorneys, skilled in representing either side, will be familiar with the most recent decisions in insurance and tort law that affect how much of a recovery the injured victim is eligible to receive. Many top-rated law firms specialize in these cases, including Wayne Wright Lawyers, the national personal injury firm and Houston wrongful death firm at McDonald Worley, P.C., among others in the Houston area and surrounding areas, many offering a free initial consultation to get you through this difficult time of grief following an accident.
For such a Texas law firm competent in Texas wrongful death law, an wrongful death specialist will ask you, the client, questions to maximize the value of your case or minimize liability in exploring your legal options—whether you are a family member of the deceased who died in an accident or the one considered liable for fatalities by defending against the personal injury claim.
In any case, you should be prepared to create a narrative of facts detailing everything that you remembered before, during and after the accident, including keeping meticulous records of medical expenses and psychological treatment made to recover, or in the case of the one considered to blame, the costs to defend. As someone defending against a claim, where one’s reputation for preventing against injury, it is also imperative to share any insurance company policy maintained, and investigate other potential actors responsible for the wrongful act, and to provide all known information that could be helpful for the lawyer to assess and test the strength and validity of the victim’s claim.
Forming an Attorney-Client Relationship: Call a Houston Wrongful Death Lawyer Today to Discuss Your Case and Odds of a Obtaining a Favorable Settlement!
Whether you are a pursuing or defending against a wrongful death claim, having the right attorney on your side can navigate the vast and ever-changing landscape of personal injury law, caps on damages and case precedent. The attorney-client relationship forms upon consultation when you consider hiring the attorney. Failing to be adequately prepared can result in not being compensated for a serious injury with clear-cut liability, such as if the attorney is not particularly qualified in the particular case brought.
Likewise, this can result in excessive payouts for non-meritorious civil claims and in turn can cause a person or entire organization’s reputation to be sullied through the burden and expense of litigation. Whether you are looking for a Houston wrongful death lawyer, Lawsuit.org will help you pinpoint the right one by offering a free consultation to obtain the just result the victim’s loved one deserves.