San Diego Wrongful Death Lawyer

WHO CAN BRING A WRONGFUL DEATH CLAIM IN SAN DIEGO?

Losing a loved one can cause incredible pain regardless of your relationship. However, the law only allows certain relationships and family members to file a wrongful death claim. California’s wrongful death statute, CCP § 377.60 allows the following survivors to bring a wrongful death claim:

• Surviving spouse or domestic partner;
• Children of the deceased;
• Grandchildren if their parent was the child of the deceased and is also deceased;
• Putative spouse, children of the putative spouse, stepchildren, parents, if they were reliant on the deceased for financial support;
• Minor children that lived with the deceased for a long period of time and were reliant on the deceased for financial support; and
• In certain circumstances, persons would be entitled to the property of the decedent by intestate succession.

If you lose a loved one, each family member cannot file their own separate wrongful death claim. Instead, you will list the total losses among all family members in a single claim. If one family member files a claim or accepts a settlement, others cannot seek further compensation. To help prevent confusion, the family should work together to decide how to handle a wrongful death claim.

Multiple wrongful death claims may be brought if multiple responsible parties contributed to the accident; you can file a claim against each of them.

TYPES OF SAN DIEGO WRONGFUL DEATH GOMEZ TRIAL ATTORNEYS HANDLES

A wrongful death case can arise from any type of accident that results in a fatality, including:

• Aviation accidents
• Automobile accidents
• Large truck accidents
• Bicycle accidents
• Motorcycle accidents
• Pedestrian accidents
• Taxi accidents
• Ride-sharing accidents
• Train accidents
• Defective drugs
• Defective products
• Drowning accidents
• Intentional acts
  

For more than a decade, Gomez Trial Attorneys has stood up for the rights of suffering families as San Diego wrongful death lawyers in all types of wrongful death cases.

WRONGFUL DEATH RISKS IN SAN DIEGO

Fatal accidents can occur anywhere. San Diego has many similar risks to other cities, as well as additional fatality risks due to the popularity of water and beach-related activities. San Diego’s fatal accident risks include:

• E-scooter and e-bike accidents on boardwalks or streets
• Tourist drivers unfamiliar with the area who make errors on the road
• Hotel, motel, and Airbnb hazards
• Drunk drivers or drivers under the influence of marijuana or other substances
• Injuries at SeaWorld, Legoland, or other theme parks
• Boat or water sports accidents due to inexperienced drivers and participants
• Dangerous conditions in or around swimming pools
• Amazon or other delivery truck accidents
• Injuries at Pechanga Arena

No matter how a fatal accident happens, it is a devastating tragedy, and families should learn about their rights to possible compensation from a San Diego wrongful death attorney.

WHAT COMPENSATION CAN YOU RECOVER IN A SAN DIEGO WRONGFUL DEATH CASE?

Few, if any, types of cases involve more actual financial loss than wrongful death cases. A wrongful death claim is designed to compensate the family for their loss. Compensable wrongful death damages are generally divided into two major categories, economic damages, and non-economic damages.

Economic damages are damages for losses whose dollar amount can be objectively determined.

Some examples of economic damages you may pursue and recover in a wrongful death action:

• Medical expenses. It’s common for a hospital to admit someone who later dies from accident injuries. These expenses can be enormous.
• Funeral expenses. Funerals can cost thousands of dollars, and many families cannot handle those costs alone.
• Property damage. Some wrongful death cases involve property damage, which plaintiffs can recover.
• Loss of income. A family may recover damages for lost income that includes income the deceased would have earned had he or she lived a full life.
• Lost household Services. A family may recover the reasonable value of household services that the deceased would have provided.

Non-economic damages are losses that it is impossible to objectively value. These are often the greatest harms. Some examples of economic damages you may pursue and recover in a wrongful death action:

• Loss of love, companionship, comfort, care, assistance, protection, affection, society, and moral support.
• Loss of enjoyment of sexual relations.
• Loss of decedent’s training and guidance.

One other type of damages is punitive damages, which are available in cases where your loved one was intentionally killed. Punitive damages are designed to punish the wrongdoer.

In some cases involving the death of a loved one, other types of claims such as survival damages can also be pursued in addition to the wrongful death claim. Due to the complexity of cases involving death, it is important to consult with an experienced San Diego wrongful death lawyer that can help you assess your case and determine what damages are available.

HOW TO SUCCESSFULLY BRING A SAN DIEGO WRONGFUL DEATH CLAIM

You will need to prove the following to prevail on a negligence-based wrongful death claim. Several factors contribute to whether you have grounds to file a wrongful death claim, your likelihood of success, and the amounts you can recover.

#1. SOMEONE ELSE WAS AT FAULT FOR THE DEATH

To file a wrongful death lawsuit in San Diego, you must have lost a family member due to someone else’s negligent, reckless, intentional, or other wrongful conduct. Most cases are based on negligence. To file a wrongful death claim based on negligence, you will need to prove:

• That the other party owed the decedent a duty of care.
• They failed to provide that duty of care.
• This failure to exercise the appropriate duty of care led to your loved one’s death.
• You suffered damages as a result of the death.

In a nursing home neglect claim, for example, a facility may fail to provide adequate care. If their failure to provide adequate care caused your loved one to fall and ultimately led to their death, you may file a wrongful death claim. In a construction accident, you might file a claim against the company that failed to provide adequate precautions at a construction site.

To determine the parties responsible for an accident, you may ask:

• Who bore a duty of care to your loved one in this scenario? On the roadways, every driver owes a duty to other drivers, pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcycle riders.
• How did that individual violate their duty of care? In an auto accident, a driver who chose to drive recklessly, leading to an accident, violated their duty of care.
• Did the violation lead to your loved one’s death? Evidence of neglect in a nursing home did not cause death if your loved one died of an unpreventable medical condition. On the other hand, neglect that directly causes your loved one’s death may form the basis of a wrongful death claim. If another person’s actions caused your loved one’s death, you might have the right to compensation for your loved one’s loss.

An experienced wrongful death lawyer can help you analyze who is at fault.

#2. YOU HAD THE PROPER RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LOVED ONE

As discussed above, California’s wrongful death law, CCP § 377.60, limits who can bring a wrongful death claim to certain close family members. The surviving spouse and children are the most common persons to bring wrongful death claims.

#3. YOUR LOVED ONE’S SUFFERING

To file a wrongful death claim, the decedent need not have died immediately at the accident scene. Often, your loved one may survive for days or even weeks before succumbing to their injuries.

In these circumstances, your family may also seek:

• Compensation for your loved one’s medical expenses. Many people find that medical bills cause significant costs after a loved one’s death. You might not expect high medical expenses if your loved one did not live long after the accident. At the hospital, however, your loved one may receive extensive treatment to attempt to preserve their life. Treatment may include X-rays, scans, surgeries, and consultations with several different doctors. A single day in a life support unit can cost between $2,000 and $4,000. The longer your loved one lives after the incident, the more medical expenses can increase.
• Compensation for your loved one’s pain and suffering. Before their death, your loved one may experience substantial pain from their injuries. As part of your wrongful death claim, you may seek compensation for your loved one’s pain and suffering.

#4. THE LOST FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF YOUR LOVED ONE

When you lose your family’s primary breadwinner, you may struggle to handle your financial obligations. This financial loss can affect your family greatly, especially if the surviving spouse does not work outside the home.

As a spouse, losing that income can leave you unsure of what to do next. Financial stress coupled with the grief from your loss can be overwhelming. Others may also have financial expectations from the deceased individual — for example, children who required their parents’ support or adult children who needed assistance attending school. In addition, elderly parents may have relied on financial assistance from an adult child.

#5. YOUR LOVED ONE’S OTHER CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE FAMILY

In addition to their income, most individuals provide a wide range of services to their family members. As part of your wrongful death claim, our San Diego wrongful death lawyers will work with you to determine what services your loved one provided. We can help you predict how much it will cost to replace those services after their loss.

Some service contributions that you may receive compensation for include:

• Childcare. Paying for childcare can be a costly expense. Parents pay an average of over $11,000 per year to place a single child in daycare. If you have multiple children or live in a high-cost area, you may pay even more for adequate childcare. You may also include the cost of after-school care for school-age children who are not old enough to be unattended.
• Providing meals for the family. Cooking for a family can take an hour or more per night. When you find yourself alone, you may have to purchase meals from a restaurant to provide food for your family. The average for each family member is $12.75. If you have a large family or eat out frequently, the costs of feeding your family can add up quickly.
• Cleaning the home. Housekeeping services in San Diego are not cheap. It costs an average of $167 each time a service comes out to clean. Many services charge more for the initial visit, depending on the home’s condition. Keeping a tidy home can be difficult after your loved one’s death. Household cleaning services can create substantial expenses for your family.
• Caring for an elderly family member. Did your deceased loved one provide care for an aging family member? In-home care in San Diego costs an average of $21 per hour, with many services requiring a minimum number of hours for each visit. Senior care can become extremely costly for the family, especially for individuals who require round-the-clock care.
• Home and yard maintenance. Depending on the size of the yard, the cost is between $49 and $129 per visit. Taking care of bigger tasks, from cleaning out the gutters to trimming shrubs, can cost even more.

Carefully consider the services your loved one provided to the family before death. We know a wrongful death claim cannot replace your loved one. However, it can enable you to replace some of the services they provided to your family. When another’s negligence takes a loved one from you, you and your family deserve to maintain the quality of life you enjoyed before the loss of a loved one.

#6. LOSS OF YOUR LOVED ONE’S PRESENCE

The loss of a loved one creates a void that many families struggle to fill. While you may have difficulty quantifying that loss, by working with an attorney, you can get a better picture of what compensation you deserve. You may recover compensation for the loss of your loved one’s presence in your life.

Damages might include:

• Loss of companionship and sexual relations for a spouse
• Loss of guidance and wisdom for a child
• Loss of care in old age for an adult parent of a child