The loss of a loved one, for any reason, can be a traumatic and emotional event. It can be even more difficult if your loved one died as a result of someone else’s negligence or -even worse – intentional act. After the loss of a loved one, we may pass through many emotional stages: denial, anger, regret, frustration, sadness and eventually acceptance. While all of these emotional stages are normal, it can be especially difficult to move on to the acceptance stage when you feel that your loved one’s death was untimely and unnecessary. It is for this reason, that the law has developed a cause of action known as a wrongful death case. While a wrongful death lawsuit certainly cannot bring your loved one back, it can provide you with compensation for the losses you and your family have suffered as a result of their death.
Under the laws and statutes of wrongful death cases in California, a claimant (person filing the lawsuit) can recover compensation for three basic categories of damages:
1. Future Financial Support: This category will look at what the deceased would have earned over their lifetime, based on what they had earned up to the time of death. The claimant is then entitled to the portion of those earnings that that they would have received but for the death.
2. Value of Household Services: This category is intended to cover those situations in which the deceased was not active in the work force, but provided household support for a spouse so that he/she could work. Traditionally, this has been the “stay at home mom” but in recent years may apply to “stay at home dads” as well. Services such as cooking, cleaning and childcare are factored in and a financial value is assigned to those services.
3. Loss of love, companionship and consortium. This category is actually broader than that. It can encompass the loss of any emotional support that the decendant gave to the claimant. Assigning a numerical value to this category, as you may imagine, can be a very difficult and often times highly emotionally charged.
As you can see, the process of putting a numerical value on a claim for a wrongful death lawsuit can be a very complicated and emotional process. Most of us would say that you cannot put a value on the loss of a loved one. However, that is exactly what an experienced California wrongful death attorney must do. During a time when you may not be thinking clearly, an experienced California wrongful death attorney can be there to guide you through the process and protect the rights that you and your family have. At the law firm of Ledger & Associates you will find experienced and compassionate California wrongful death attorneys that would like to help you through this difficult time. If your loved one supported you, financially and emotionally, when they were alive, then why wouldn’t they want you to continue to receive that support now? Contact the office of Ledger & Associates at 1-800-300-0001 or online at www.ledgerlaw.com to discuss your situation with an experienced wrongful death attorney.
