Breaking Down What You Need To Know About Your Port Charlotte Wrongful Death Case
Corbin Sutter
Wrongful Death
No family wishes to face a wrongful death case, but some Port Charlotte families do find themselves in just this position. Wrongful death cases occur when a person’s death is due to another party’s negligent actions, so families aren’t just left grieving their loss but facing the difficult situation of rectifying these actions as well. A wrongful death lawsuit helps these families to recoup losses from medical bills, funeral costs, lost wages, and more to allow them to grieve and heal fully. What Exactly Is A Wrongful Death In Port Charlotte?
A wrongful death in Port Charlotte, Florida can be defined as a death of a person caused by a wrongful act, negligence, or breach of contract, where the deceased individual would have been able to pursue a lawsuit to cover damages themselves had the accident not resulted in death. For instance, if a person is driving down the road in the Port Charlotte area and they are in an accident with an intoxicated driver, their family can pursue a wrongful death lawsuit.
Wrongful death cases don’t only apply to auto accident situations. If a person is on a watercraft in navigable waters, and this watercraft is being driven in a negligent way resulting in the death of the passenger, the family may pursue a wrongful death case. In another situation, if an individual is on a worksite and unsafe conditions lead to a fatal injury, this may be cause to pursue a wrongful death lawsuit as well.
Wrongful death lawsuits in Florida must be filed within 2 years of the wrongful death. Survivors may receive the benefits from a wrongful death case including lost support from the date of the death, loss of future support, funeral costs, medical costs, and more. Considered to be “survivors” of the deceased are spouses, children, parents, or those who are dependent on the deceased for support.
Proving Your Case
In order to receive damages in a wrongful death lawsuit, one must prove their case in court. Along with the family’s skilled Port Charlotte personal injury attorney, the family must prove:
• A duty of care – It must be proven that the negligent party had a duty of care to the deceased individual. A company has a duty of care to provide a safe working environment, or a driver has a duty of care to observe rules of the road.
• The duty of care has been breached – Once it has been proven that the negligent party had a duty of care to the deceased, it must then be proven that this duty of care had been breached. In the workplace scenario, the family of the deceased and their personal injury attorney will need to prove that the workplace was unsafe and this is what lead to the fatal accident. In an intoxicated driver accident, one would need to prove that the intoxication present breached the driver’s duty of care.
• Causation – Lastly, the family of the deceased will need to prove that the breach of duty of care was the direct cause of their loved one’s passing. In a boating accident scenario, the family will need to prove that the driver of the watercraft had a duty of care to keep passengers safe, this duty of care was breached with negligent driving of the watercraft, and this negligent driving was the direct cause of the fatal accident.
A wrongful death case is a stressful and emotionally draining situation for any family. With the assistance of a skilled and knowledgeable personal injury attorney in Port Charlotte, you can have confidence that your case is being handled in the best possible way. If you’d like to learn more about having your wrongful death case represented, contact us at AllInjuriesLawFirm.com today.