San Francisco Wrongful Death Lawyer
Table of Contents
SAN FRANCISCO WRONGFUL DEATH LAWYER
The sudden, unexpected death of a loved one is heartbreaking, no matter the circumstances. The mental, emotional, and financial consequences of fatal accidents are often far-reaching, impacting nearly every aspect of a grieving family’s life.
When victims lose their lives in accidents, due to the negligence of others, it is imperative that their surviving relatives reach out to a wrongful death attorney in San Francisco, California, to explore their legal options.
Suppose your loved one died in the instance of another person’s negligence. In that case, you can hold that person responsible for their actions.
Every year, hundreds of people lose their lives because of the reckless actions of other people. A San Francisco wrongful death lawyer from our law office can help you receive the compensation you deserve for your wrongful death claim.
CONTACT AN EXPERIENCED WRONGFUL DEATH ATTORNEY TODAY
Contact a wrongful death lawyer to help you hold the negligent party responsible when your loved ones are killed because of another person’s negligence.
Our legal team can offer you legal advice and walk you through your legal options.
The Halavanau Law Office, P.C. offers a free, no-obligation consultation for your wrongful death case that is protected by the attorney-client privilege. It protects anything you talk about with our lawyer in person, over the phone, or through e-mail.
WHAT IS A WRONGFUL DEATH CLAIM?
Wrongful deaths occur when your loved one dies due to recklessness or negligence from a person or a company. Wrongful deaths can happen due to medical malpractice, unsafe work conditions, or a car accident, or any vehicular accident.
Wrongful death claims allow the surviving family members of the deceased to obtain compensation from the people responsible. The Halavanau Law Office helps families protect their legal rights while investigating the circumstances surrounding their wrongful death cases.
Regardless of the underlying circumstances of the death, surviving relatives interested in filing wrongful death claims against the responsible party must prove the following elements existed surrounding the death of their loved ones. These elements include:
- The decedent lost their life.
- The death was caused by another person’s negligence or with the intent to cause harm to another person.
- The claimant is suffering monetary injuries as a result of the death.
In addition to proving the elements listed above, claimants must prove that the elements of negligence existed in claims surrounding the reckless, careless, or negligent actions of another person causing death. These elements include proving:
- Duty of Care: The defendant owed the victim the duty of care.
- Breach of the Duty of Care: The claimant must prove that the defendant breached their duty of care in some way. Some examples of breaches include disobeying traffic laws, not exercising the standard duty of care during medical procedures, and not providing adequate training for employees.
- Causation: In addition to proving a breach of the duty of care existed, claimants must also prove that the breach was the cause of death for their loved one.
- Damages: Finally, the claimant must prove that the death of the victim generated damages for the claimant. Some damages resulting from a wrongful death include funeral and burial expenses, loss of income, loss of protection, loss of inheritance, medical expenses, and pain and suffering.
Call or text (415) 494-8535 or submit an online request form to Get a Free Consultation.
TYPES OF WRONGFUL DEATH CASES OUR PERSONAL INJURY LAW OFFICE HANDLES
Here at Halavanau Law Office, our legal team handles the following types of wrongful death cases:
- Auto accidents such as bike accidents, pedestrian accidents, motorcycle accidents, or semi-truck collisions
- Defects in a product
- Premises liability accidents (injuries inside homes or private properties, construction sites, or defective sidewalks)
- Occupational hazards and exposure
- Inadequate training at workplaces
- Improper safety equipment at workplaces
- Improper Supervision in:
- nursing home facilities
- daycare facilities
- or on field trips
- Nursing home abuse and neglect
In a wrongful death case, it doesn’t matter what the person’s intent responsible for the death was. Instead, what must be proved is the fact that the person responsible for the death failed to act with reasonable care.
WHO CAN FILE A WRONGFUL DEATH LAWSUIT?
Only a few specific people can make a wrongful death claim, and it is mostly the deceased’s surviving family. The few people who can file a wrongful death lawsuit are:
- The surviving spouse
- The surviving children
- The surviving family (parents and siblings)
There are instances where other parties may be entitled to file wrongful death claims on behalf of victims. In general, in cases where none of the aforementioned parties are available to file a lawsuit, the right to file, is extended to others who could potentially inherit property from the estate of the decedent based on estate distribution laws in California. These can include:
- Deceased person’s parents or deceased person’s siblings, depending on who is alive at the time of the person’s death
And, if they can show that they were financially dependent on the deceased person, some other individuals can bring a wrongful death lawsuit in California. These parties include:
- Stepchildren of the decedent
- Putative spouses of the decedent and children of the putative spouse
- The decedent’s parents
AVAILABLE COMPENSATION IN A WRONGFUL DEATH CLAIM
In a wrongful death case, you can seek compensation from the negligent party responsible for your loved one’s death. You can recover the following damages:
- All medical expenses
- Post-life expenses, including burial and funeral expenses.
- Lost wages
- Loss of financial support
- In the instance of a lost spouse, loss of moral support
A loved one’s wrongful death can cause severe emotional distress, especially in the cases of a lost spouse. Hiring a wrongful death lawyer for legal advice can provide you with the much-needed financial compensation to get you back on your feet and ease the burden.
Call or text (415) 494-8535 or submit an online request form to Get a Free Consultation.
WHAT IS THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR WRONGFUL DEATH CASES IN CALIFORNIA?
There is only a short period to file a wrongful death claim in California. Most wrongful death lawsuits are required to be filed within two years from the date of a loved one’s death.
In the instance of a wrongful death case for medical malpractice, the period is much shorter. And the statute of limitations to file a claim against certain defendants can be as short as six months. The rules pertaining to the deadlines to file can be complicated and it is important to consult an attorney to understand specific circumstances of your case to file your claim timely. Working with an aggressive and knowledgeable wrongful death attorney in San Francisco, such as Halavanau Law Office, will ensure you have the best chances of receiving justice for your loved one.
Our legal team ensures families receive the best service to receive justice for their loved ones.
WHEN SHOULD I CONTACT A SAN FRANCISCO WRONGFUL DEATH ATTORNEY?
When losing a family member or a spouse, there should be a time for mourning. However, suppose you believe that your spouse or family member died because of someone else’s negligence. In that case, you should contact a wrongful death attorney as soon as possible.
San Francisco wrongful death lawyers will give you the clarity and guidance you need to take legal action against the negligent parties responsible. An experienced attorney will be a personal representative to obtain justice for the family members of the deceased.
WHY CHOOSE HALAVANAU LAW OFFICE, P.C. FOR YOUR WRONGFUL DEATH CLAIM?
Halavanau Law Office offers a free consultation to help you start taking legal action against negligent parties if there is a valid claim. Our law office takes the stressful burden of navigating a complex legal system away from your family and provides a wide range of services to protect our clients’ best interests. Our services include:
- Filing the lawsuit
Working with San Francisco wrongful death attorney or our law firm is your family’s best bet for obtaining justice for their loved one.
- Gathering evidence
Our team will gather concrete evidence to support your claim and ensure that you are in the best possible position to protect your legal rights. Your evidence can come in many forms, such as medical documents, depositions, investigative reports, police reports, and many more.
- We challenge the other side’s defense
The defendant will likely raise legal defenses to avoid being held liable for the victim’s death. Our team will answer back to their challenges and protect your legal rights to recover the maximum compensation possible and seek justice.
- Negotiate settlements
The majority of wrongful death claims in California are settled out of Court. Our team at Halavanau Law Office is ready to effectively use arguments and various forms of evidence to negotiate settlements until you receive the amount you deserve.
- Represent you in a trial
If we cannot come to a settlement agreement with the at-fault party, our team has the knowledge and means to present your case at a trial.
SAN FRANCISCO WRONGFUL DEATH FAQs
Here are the most frequently asked questions about wrongful death lawsuits in San Francisco:
Wrongful death lawsuit settlements are a bit hard to estimate in the state of California. Just like the circumstances of each case, different families have expenses that vary greatly. Some cases in San Francisco can reach from thousands to hundreds of thousands to millions, depending on the defendants’ financial condition and liability analysis. While there is never a guarantee of a successful outcome, working with a wrongful death lawyer should certainly increase the chances of success.
It might be best to hire a wrongful death attorney to receive an accurate evaluation of your claim. Not only can the lawyer provide you with an evaluation, but they can also ensure that you receive full compensation for all your expenses.
Wrongful death cases require specific legal elements of negligence to be proven in Court. Simplified, these legal elements are:
- The death of a person caused by
- Negligence or willful intent that causes
- Loss of love or affection or emotional support
- Financial or physical support
Losing someone you love is simply tragic, and it can be devastating if it is unexpected. Most wrongful death cases are clear-cut and don’t take much to be proven in Court, but other cases require thorough investigation and a tough fight in court.
Supporting evidence, such as police and investigative reports, witness statements, expert evaluation, depositions, and many more, can help prove that a party’s negligence caused the death of your loved one.
There are two categories for calculating wrongful death compensation: economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages are:
- Financial support.
- Loss of gifts or benefits.
- Funeral and burial expenses.
- The reasonable value of services in the home that the dead would have provided.
Non-economic damages are the loss of love, companionship, or emotional support, the loss of intimate and sexual relations, and the loss of the dead’s guidance and training. There aren’t any fixed standards for non-economic damages, making the work of an experienced wrongful death attorney particularly important in presenting your case.
You can only file wrongful death claims against a dead person’s estate, not the dead person. More commonly known as the estate trustee, their representative is the person named in the deceased’s last Will or appointed by the Court.
Certain relatives can file a wrongful death claim after establishing that their loved one’s death has grounds for this type of claim. After that, they should contact an attorney to help them build their case and guide them through the process.
A wrongful death happens when a loved one dies because of another person or party’s negligence or willful intent. Several scenarios can cause this, such as medical malpractice, intentional killing, or motor vehicle accidents.
You can file wrongful death claims against companies or institutions. These types of wrongful death cases are common when product liability is involved. Product liability means that a defect in the product caused a loved one’s death.
A non-dependent relative is someone who is 18 or over and shares a home with you and is not dependent on your financial support. Generally, direct relatives and dependents are the immediate eligible people who can file a wrongful death lawsuit.
CONTACT A SAN FRANCISCO WRONGFUL DEATH LAWYER TODAY
Halavanau Law Office has a wrongful death lawyer ready to help you receive compensation for your deceased loved one who died because of a wrongful act. Contact us for a free consultation that marks the start of you taking legal action against those responsible.
Contact our law office today at (415) 692-5301 to schedule a free, no-obligation case evaluation at your earliest convenience to see what legal options are available for you.
Related Links:
- San Jose, CA – Jose Gastelum Killed in Hit-and-Run Bicycle Accident on S First St
- San Francisco, CA – Man Killed, Four Injured in Eight-Car Crash on Lake Merced Blvd at Higuera Ave
- Sacramento, CA – Two Killed, Three Injured in Head-on Car Crash at Jefferson Blvd & Locks Dr
- San Leandro, CA – One Killed, Two Injured in Nine-Car Crash on I-880 at Washington Ave
- Oakland, CA – Woman Hit & Killed in Pedestrian Accident at 300 MacArthur Blvd
