Los Angeles Wrongful Death Attorney

Wrongful Death Attorney David Woolf

Los Angeles wrongful death attorney David Woolf represents the loved ones of a victim who has died in an accident. Mr. Woolf helps these loved ones file a personal injury claim on the victim’s behalf. In California, this wrongful death claim is often accompanied by a survival action by the victim’s estate. These claims demand compensation from the negligent party.

What is a wrongful death claim in California?

In California and Los Angeles, a wrongful death claim is a type of personal injury lawsuit.¹

Personal injury law allows a victim who has been hurt by someone else’s negligence or poor conduct to recover compensation for their losses. However, if the victim has suffered fatal injuries, he or she cannot file the claim on their own. California’s wrongful death statutes let the victim’s estate or his or her family members file the lawsuit, instead. In this way, the negligent party can still be held accountable for his or her wrongful conduct. It also allows those who were affected by the tragedy to recover the compensation that they need and deserve.

Because the plaintiffs are different, the legal damages available in a wrongful death case are different from regular personal injury claims. For example, the plaintiffs in a wrongful death case did not accrue any medical expenses because they are not the actual victim who was physically hurt.

Who can sue under California’s wrongful death law?

Under California’s wrongful death law, the following people can bring a lawsuit:

• the victim’s surviving spouse,
• the victim’s surviving domestic partner,
• any children of the victim,
• any grandchildren of the victim, if the victim’s children are also deceased,
• minors who were dependent on the victim for at least half of their financial support, like stepchildren, and
• anyone who would have been entitled to inherit the victim’s property under California’s laws of intestacy.

A domestic partner generally has to be registered under California Family Code 297(b) to have standing to bring a wrongful death claim.² However, putative spouses may be able to file a wrongful death suit, in some cases.

The personal representatives of any of these people can also bring the claim.

At the same time that these people pursue financial compensation through a wrongful death claim, the victim’s estate may also be pursuing compensation through a survival action.

What is a survival action?

A survival action is also a type of personal injury claim.³ It is filed by the deceased victim’s estate, rather than his or her family members or loved ones.

Because the plaintiff is different, the types of compensation available in a survival action are different than those that are available in a wrongful death case.

What compensation is available?

Both wrongful death cases and survival causes of action aim to recover compensation for the plaintiff’s legal damages. These include both non-economic damages and economic losses. However, because the plaintiff in each type of claim is different, those damages will be different, as well.

In a California wrongful death case, the plaintiffs demand compensation for their:

• financial support that the victim would have contributed during either the victim’s expected lifetime, or the plaintiff’s expected lifetime,
• loss of the gifts or other benefits that the plaintiff would have expected to receive from the victim,
• funeral expenses,
• burial expenses,
• loss of household services that the victim would have provided,
• loss of the victim’s love, companionship, comfort, care, assistance, affection, protection, moral support, and society,
• loss of the enjoyment of sexual relations with the victim, and
• loss of the victim’s training and guidance.⁴

Importantly, this does not include damages for emotional distress.⁵ However, plaintiffs in wrongful death cases who saw the fatal accident occur may be able to file a personal injury lawsuit for negligent infliction of emotional distress, or for intentional infliction of emotional distress.⁶

In determining the value of these legal damages, the jury is not allowed to consider the following factors:

• the plaintiff’s grief, sorrow, or mental anguish,
• the victim’s pain and suffering, or
• the plaintiff’s poverty or wealth.⁷

Punitive damages – those that are imposed on the defendant for heinous or egregious conduct – are generally not available in a wrongful death lawsuit. The only exception is if the victim was killed in a felony homicide, and the defendant was convicted for the crime.⁸

In a California survival action, the victim’s estate demands compensation for the losses suffered by the decedent after the accident, but before he or she died. This includes:

• medical bills for the care that the victim received,
• wages lost between the accident and the victim’s death,
• any health care services that the victim would have provided to a family member before the victim’s death, and
• property damage.⁹

If the victim’s death was instantaneous, these damages may be minimal or may prevent the claim from moving forward.

Unlike in wrongful death claims, punitive damages are available in survival causes of action.

What are some common causes of a wrongful death?

A wrongful or unexpected death can happen in any of the following situations in Orange County or southern California:

• car accidents,
• incidents of medical malpractice,
• workplace accidents,
• slip-and-fall cases, or
• product liability situations.

By getting the legal representation of a wrongful death attorney with experience in these practice areas, victims can pursue their legal right to compensation during this difficult time.

How can a Los Angeles wrongful death lawyer help in my case?

A Los Angeles wrongful death attorney can help plaintiffs by:

• maximizing an out-of-court settlement, and
• filing a wrongful death claim, if no settlement is adequate.

Soon after the fatal accident, an insurance adjuster for the negligent party’s insurance company will likely make an initial settlement offer to the deceased person’s surviving family members. This opens the settlement negotiations. The legal advice of an experienced wrongful death attorney from a reputable law firm is the best way to know what a fair settlement offer is.

If no adequate settlement offer is made, a wrongful death lawyer can file the appropriate lawsuits in civil court. These lawsuits are a formal demand for compensation. They have to be filed before the statute of limitations has expired. While these lawsuits are pending, settlement discussions will continue. If the cases do not settle before trial, your wrongful death attorney will present the claim to the judge and jury for their verdict.

What is the statute of limitations for a wrongful death lawsuit?

The statute of limitations is the amount of time that a plaintiff and his or her personal injury attorney have to file the legal action.

In California, the statute of limitations for a wrongful death claim is 2 years from the date of death.¹⁰

For a survival action, the statute of limitations is 2 years from the later of:

• the date of the injury that led to the fatality, or
• 6 months after death.¹¹

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