The loss of a loved one is always devastating, but that’s especially true when the death of your friend or family member occurs as a direct result of negligence or wrongdoing. Whether your loved one died after a workplace accident, was killed in a car crash, or was harmed by some other careless act, both you and the deceased victim deserve justice.
Anderson Blanda & Saltzman is here to help you get it. With more than 100 years of experience representing over 10,000 plaintiffs, our skilled and experienced Lafayette wrongful death lawyers will work hard to advocate for you and get you the compensation you deserve when a loved one has died.
Our Lafayette personal injury attorneys have been named as Super Lawyers and have been designated among the Top 100 Trial Lawyers, so you can trust our experience in these sensitive and complex cases.
Give us a call at (337) 233-3366 as soon as possible in the aftermath of a loved one’s death so we can begin gathering evidence, identifying potential defendants, and helping you to put together a strong claim. Your consultation is free, and we don’t charge legal fees unless we win, so get a skilled legal professional on your side today.
What is a Wrongful Death Claim in Louisiana?
Under Louisiana law, victims who have been harmed by negligence or wrongdoing can pursue a personal injury claim. However, when someone dies as a result of an accident, they obviously cannot make a case to get compensation. They aren’t here to sue the person who hurt them. This doesn’t mean the person who caused harm just gets to walk away, though.
In these circumstances, certain surviving loved ones can pursue a wrongful death case. In Louisiana, Article 2315.2 specifies who can bring a wrongful death claim. Under this statute, the following parties can file suit for wrongful death damages.
- “The surviving spouse and child or children of the deceased, or either the spouse or the child or children.
- The surviving father and mother of the deceased, or either of them if he left no spouse or child surviving.
- The surviving brothers and sisters of the deceased, or any of them, if he left no spouse, child, or parent surviving.
- The surviving grandfathers and grandmothers of the deceased, or any of them, if he left no spouse, child, parent, or sibling surviving.”
If you are one of the family members on this list, you could be able to file a lawsuit to hold the parties who killed your loved one accountable and require them to pay damages for all that you have lost.
Types of Wrongful Death Claims
Wrongful death claims can arise in many different situations, whenever someone is negligent or someone engages in wrongdoing that causes a person’s death to occur. Some common types of wrongful death claims include:
- Car accident claims
- Truck accident claims
- Rideshare accident claims
- Motorcycle accident claims
- Defective product claims
- Helicopter accident claims
- Bicycle accident claims
- Hit-and-run claims
- Pedestrian accident claims
All of these types of cases are personal injury claims. It is worth noting that things are different if a person is killed at work. Under Louisiana’s workers’ compensation laws, injured workers must go through the workers’ compensation system instead of pursuing a tort case. The same is true when someone is killed at work. Surviving loved ones typically cannot sue an employer for any job-related damages. Instead, you’ll need to pursue a claim under Louisiana’s workers’ compensation laws.
Louisiana’s workers’ compensation laws require a completely different process for obtaining compensation for losses compared with a personal injury claim. You’ll need to understand the workers’ compensation rules and regulations regarding when you must make your claim and the steps you’ll need to take to obtain payment for the damage you have endured.
Under workers’ compensation laws, you’ll be able to recover death benefits if your loved one was killed on the job, but not compensation for things like pain and suffering. You can, however, recover those death benefits without showing negligence or wrongdoing. As long as your loved one died as a direct result of performing work duties, benefits should be available.
Who is Responsible for a Wrongful Death?
Both individuals and companies can be held liable when their actions cause a death.
Louisiana follows fault laws for car accidents, which means that at-fault drivers are always to blame if they cause a crash to happen. This is important as car accidents are among the most common causes of fatal injuries that occur.
In some cases, however, there may actually be multiple parties who can be held liable for losses. This can happen, for example, if someone causes a fatal accident while they are performing their job duties.
According to Louisiana law, “masters and employers are answerable for the damage occasioned by their servants and overseers, in the exercise of the functions in which they are employed.” This means that if an employee kills someone while doing their job, the company can be liable regardless of whether the business was personally negligent in any way.
This is just one example of a situation where multiple defendants may be on the hook for damages. It’s important to identify all of the parties who could potentially be held responsible and made to provide compensation as this will maximize the chances there is enough money and insurance coverage to pay for all losses that happened due to the fatal incident.
Damages in a Wrongful Death Claim
When someone passes away, the person or company who is responsible for that death can be required to pay both damages incurred by the deceased before the death and can be required to pay damages suffered by surviving loved ones. These damages can include:
- Medical bills incurred before the death for any injuries resulting from the accident or incident
- Pain and suffering
- Funeral expenses for the burial of the deceased
- Loss of all of the income the deceased would have earned during the remainder of their life
- Loss of benefits the deceased would have provided, such as a pension or medical insurance
- Loss of the value of the service the deceased person would have provided if they had not been killed
- Loss of the companionship of the deceased
These damages can be obtained by surviving loved ones through a lawsuit filed in court. It will be up to the plaintiff to prove that the defendant was legally liable for the death, either as a result of intentional wrongdoing or because of negligence or carelessness.
How to Get Compensation In a Wrongful Death Claim
If you are trying to recover monetary compensation for a loved one’s loss, you’ll need to prove several elements of your claim. You’ll need to show:
- The defendant had a duty or obligation to your loved one to keep them safe or, at a minimum, to avoid causing them any harm.
- The defendant intentionally did something wrong or was negligent. Negligence is defined as behaving more carelessly than an average person would have under the same circumstances. Violation of a safety rule is also a way to prove negligence. Under a legal doctrine called negligence per se, breaking a rule designed to prevent accidents is automatically presumed to be negligent without additional proof of carelessness.
- The incident that led to the death was directly caused by negligence. For example, if a careless driver caused a fatal car accident, this would be an example of when you could make a wrongful death claim.
- Damages occurred as a result. These are the losses you and your deceased loved one experienced.
Louisiana Civil Code Article 2316 establishes the rule that carelessness can lead to legal action. The statute says, “Every person is responsible for the damage he occasions not merely by his act, but by his negligence, his imprudence, or his want of skill.” Most wrongful death claims arise under this negligence statute, although it is possible to sue someone for wrongful death after they intentionally kill your loved one.
Regardless of whether the grounds for your claim are intentional wrongdoing or negligence, you’ll need to provide evidence of all of the different elements of your claim. This can include:
- Eyewitness testimony to the fatal incident
- Police reports from the scene of the accident or any subsequent investigations
- Evidence from the accident scene such as pictures and videos
- Records you obtain, such as truck maintenance logs or driver logs in the case of a fatal truck crash
- Copies of medical records showing the deceased was injured due to the accident and that the injuries were fatal
- Proof of pain and suffering experienced as a result of the incident, such as a pain journal
- Proof of lost earnings the deceased would have made over the remainder of their lifetime
- Proof of the relationship you had with the deceased to show the extent of your lost companionship or demonstrate your emotional distress
The more evidence you gather, the stronger your case and the better your chances of being fully compensated for damages.
In many cases, claims are settled outside of court. This can happen if a settlement is successfully negotiated between the surviving family members of the deceased victim and those responsible for causing the fatal accident. Working with an attorney can maximize your chances of negotiating a fair settlement because a skilled lawyer knows what the case should be worth and can stand up to big insurance companies to make them pay what you deserve.
Settlements can be less stressful since there’s no question of what will happen in court and no need for a trial — but it is essential not to leave money on the table. As a result, no one should agree to a settlement without understanding the extent of their losses and talking with an attorney about their rights.
If you can’t settle your case, you’ll need to go to court and prove the defendant should be liable for your losses. You’ll also need to demonstrate the extent of your harm. This is where expert testimony can become especially important. You need to prove that more likely than not, all of the evidence you are presenting is true and the defendant should be held responsible for damages.
It’s crucial that you have the right advocate in these situations. The reality is, that wrongful death claims can result in significant compensation because the losses are so great. However, it will be necessary to fully prove the extent of the damage in order to recover the full amount of compensation you deserve. That’s where a Lafayette wrongful death attorney comes in.
A skilled attorney can help you maximize your chances of winning in court or out of court. At Anderson Blanda & Saltzman, members of our legal team are not just skilled negotiators. We also have courtroom experience and have been named among the Top 100 Trial Lawyers. We are ready to advocate for you from beginning to end, no matter how your claim is resolved.
Let Anderson Blanda & Saltzman Handle Your Wrongful Death Claim
Wrongful death cases are among the most complex and important cases in the civil justice system because they enable surviving loved ones to get justice for their relative whose life was wrongfully cut short.
If you are making a wrongful death claim, you need a trusted, skilled advocate fighting for you. Anderson Blanda & Saltzman offer unparalleled experience and skill in these types of cases.
With our designation as the Best Lawyers in America and the numerous other accolades we have received including being designated as SuperLawyers and earning membership in the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum, it’s clear that we have the skill and experience necessary to succeed in these claims.
To find out more about how we can help you, give our Lafayette wrongful death lawyers a call today at (337) 233-3366 to talk with us about your case. Your consultation is free and you only pay legal fees if we win, so it’s time to get a trusted advocate fighting for you today so you can get the compensation you need and deserve.