Our Albany fatal accident attorneys understand that we’re not your first call after a loved one’s passing. Funerals, wakes, and the well-being of your loved ones should be your first priority. But if you believe that negligence contributed to your loved one’s passing, you may have the legal right to take your concerns before a judge.
That’s where Morelli Law Firm can help. When you’re ready, we can work with you to seek justice for your loved one’s passing. We can also secure financial compensation that makes your mourning period and recovery less stressful. We do all this with compassion and understanding, ensuring that we respect your grief while supporting you in court.
What to Do Following a Fatal Accident
You can work with medical professionals to best react to the immediate aftermath of a fatal car accident. In the weeks that follow, however, other professionals can begin to take some of the stress off of your shoulders. That’s why it’s often in your best interest to:
Contact an Insurance Provider
Most insurance providers require you to reach out with information regarding an accident within 24 hours of that accident occurring. If you are not in the position to report your own accident, you can work with a family member or legal representative to get information regarding your losses into the right hands.
Your insurance provider can then help you address the financial concerns immediately brought up by your accident. With that stress out of the way, you can focus on healing your family and tending to your own injuries.
Schedule a Consultation With an Attorney
You do not have to schedule a consultation with a fatal accident attorney within days of your loss. It is in your best interest, however, to contact a legal representative as soon as you can in the wake of a negligence-based car accident. If you suspect deliberate or unintentional miscare led to your loved one’s passing, we can begin preparing the case that can net you compensation.
Moreover, our attorneys can take the pressure of establishing your legal standing off of your shoulders. This means that we can:
- Exchange information with anyone else involved in the accident
- Gather evidence of liability
- Value your accident losses
- Communicate with expert witnesses about your circumstances
- Stay on top of your legal deadlines
- Prevent miscommunications with local law enforcement
At the end of the day, our team wants to make your recovery period as straightforward and stress-free as possible. When you have us on your side, you can approach the legal complexities of your case at your own pace.
Your Losses Entitle You to Legal Action Under Certain Circumstances
Before you file a fatal car accident complaint on a loved one’s behalf, make sure that the state of New York allows you to do so. New York Consolidated Law § 4-1.1 gives a loved one’s parents, children, and spouse the right to file a fatal accident claim on their behalf. Alternatively, the decedent’s personal representative may take legal action in their name.
This classification, however, can conflate a fatal accident claim with a wrongful death claim. It’s easiest to think of fatal accident claims as a subset of wrongful death claims. If you’re not sure what rights you may be entitled to while pursuing a fatal accident claim, you can work with a fatal accident lawyer in Albany to elaborate on your options.
Albany Fatal Accident Lawyer Near Me 877-751-9800
You Must File a Fatal Accident Claim to Pursue Action on a Loved One’s Behalf
Even if you have the right to take legal action on your loved one’s behalf, you cannot do so without filing a fatal accident claim. Fatal accident claims explain your circumstances to a civil judge and, upon approval, give you the right to summon a liable party. Without a civil claim in action, you’re operating outside of New York’s judicial system.
A comprehensive fatal car accident claim should include:
- A detailed description of the accident in question
- The identity of the party you want to hold responsible for your loved one’s passing
- Evidence establishing a violated duty of care
- A detailed account of your losses and their economic value
- Evidence of those losses
You are under no obligation to build this complaint alone. Instead, our Albany fatal accident attorneys can return to the scene of your accident and gather the data needed to establish liability alongside your losses. You can then provide testimony regarding the accident privately.
Upon your complaint’s approval, we can move into either fatal accident negotiations or a civil trial. Which path you choose is up to you – and, to some degree, a case’s defendant. Cooperative defendants may make you a settlement offer worth negotiating. Uncooperative defendants may need the firm hand of a judge to guide them.
Your Fatal Accident Claim Has a Strict Deadline
Our team wants to give you the time you need to grieve a lost loved one. However, the deadline for legal action based on a fatal accident limits your actionable time to two years. Specifically, New York Civil Practice Law & Rules § 214 strives to keep fatal car accident cases relevant within a civil court.
We can build your case for you while you’re in the midst of your grief. There may even be circumstances in which we can challenge your case deadline. That said, we can’t get started until you schedule a consultation with one of our representatives.
We Can Explore Your Right to a Fatal Accident Lawsuit Together
Your first instinct after the passing of a loved one may not be to reach out to an attorney. A fatal accident lawyer in Albany does more than move you toward legal action, though. We want to give you the opportunity to explore your legal rights while also making space for your grief. In other words, we want to help you do right by your loved ones.
You can learn more about the services our fatal accident attorneys offer by scheduling an appointment with our office. We make it easy for you to request a case evaluation by calling our representatives or reaching out online. Morelli Law Firm can help you take action on a loved one’s behalf.