No matter what the circumstances of someone’s passing are, you and your family deserve time to grieve. That said, deaths involving another person’s negligence or deliberately-reckless behavior also merit justice.
Wrongful deaths can be the result of defective products, medical errors, vehicle accidents, or workplace accidents. If you lost a loved one due to the negligent actions of another person, consider hiring a NY wrongful death attorney from Morelli Law Firm for legal guidance. We will guide you through the entire claims process.
What to Expect From Our New York Wrongful Death Lawyers
At Morelli Law Firm, we understand that you may be facing significant emotional trauma and considerable financial difficulties. So, when you become our client, we offer to manage your case for you and take on the responsibility of fulfilling the legal tasks required of your case.
Our wrongful death lawyers in New York aim to help you with your case by:
- Helping you to lawfully express your pain and suffering in a wrongful death lawsuit
- Identifying who may be held liable for your loved one’s death, which may involve filing multiple claims or lawsuits
- Helping you to fight for compensation for emotional distress, medical bills, funeral costs, emotional trauma, and other damages you and your family suffered
- Aiming to secure precedent-setting verdicts, which ensure that others will not suffer as you did
- Tapping into our legal resources to retrieve evidence for your case
We know that many third parties could be involved in the wrongful death of your loved one. As such, we will conduct an extensive investigation to ensure that everyone liable is held accountable. The process of the inquiry is often complicated, but our legal team will address all essential aspects while you make funeral and burial preparations.
We Can Represent You in Trials and Negotiations
You’re under no obligation to go to trial in a wrongful death case. Depending on the circumstances surrounding your loss, you may be able to fight for compensation outside of the courtroom. We can stand with you through the negotiation process by calculating your potential financial support and interceding to prevent intimidation tactics.
There may come a time, however, when negotiations become uncivil or even harmful to your case. In these situations, we’ve found that it’s best to pull back and bring your case before a judge. While you’ll rely on a judge and jury to determine your rightful compensation, this legal intercedence can also keep negotiations more peaceful.
New York Wrongful Death Lawyer Near Me 877-751-9800
Settlement Offers in Wrongful Death Cases
Our team will also keep the door open for possible settlement negotiations. When the investigation produces evidence, many third parties often opt to settle out of court. However, we will never advise you to accept a settlement figure that is less than what you are entitled to receive.
If your case moves to out-of-court negotiations, you can count on us to provide a comprehensive estimate of your ideal financial support. We’ll keep this number in mind while representing you.
Our wrongful death attorneys in New York will fight to get you the support you need to adequately recover from the emotional and financial trials that came with your loss. You can learn more about how a personal injury settlement is calculated during one of our initial consultations.
We Can Assess Your Damages to Value Your Case
In a personal injury case, the injured party is allowed to pursue compensation for the damages they suffered, which can involve both financial and non-financial losses. However, when that individual passes away as a result of their injuries, their surviving heirs or a representative of their estate may pursue damages on their behalf.
The following types of damages may be compensable in your wrongful death case:
- Funeral expenses, including costs for burial or cremation services
- Loss of income from your loved one if they contributed to the family income
- Medical debt inherited from your loved one
- Costs to fix property damage that occurred during the accident, such as to a vehicle or home
- Costs to replace property if it was destroyed in your loved one’s accident
- Pain and suffering experienced by both your loved one and the surviving family
- Emotional losses, such as loss of parental guidance, companionship, love and affection, and consortium
Though certain surviving family members may receive compensation for their loved one’s death, they must have a personal representative of the deceased file their case. Our legal team can explain this process to you.
We Can File Your Wrongful Death Claim Before Its Deadline
Per EPTL §5-4.1, you have two years to have a personal representative file a wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of your loved one. This window begins on the date of your loved one’s death, not the accident that injured them.
Our team of New York wrongful death lawyers can monitor this deadline for you and file accordingly, as failing to file your lawsuit on time can result in your case being dismissed. Should that happen, you would be deprived of pursuing compensation.
Wrongful Death Can Result from Various Negligence-Based Accidents
Unfortunately, if an accident can lead to injury, it also has the potential to lead to death. “Wrongful death” is a broad area of law that encompasses various scenarios that lead to death, ranging from car accidents to product malfunctions.
Below are some common types of cases with brief explanations about how one party’s negligence can lead to an individual’s death. If any of the following applies to your loved one, you may be entitled to file a wrongful death claim or lawsuit on their behalf.
Medical Malpractice
When you go to the hospital, you will find doctors and nurses who are certified and skilled professionals. However, errors are inevitable. Doctors who are overworked and tired can fail to follow the standard protocol of a procedure. They can even misdiagnose a patient. As a result, the situation can lead to medical malpractice, which can be fatal.
Examples of fatal medical malpractice include:
- Misdiagnosing or failing to diagnose a patient’s disease
- Making a fatal surgical error during a major operation
- Leaving objects inside the patient’s body, leading to infection or other complications
- Prescribing the wrong prescription medicines or dosage for medicines
- Failing to read a patient’s previous medical history before administering treatment
The statute of limitations on medical malpractice cases differs from that of your standard personal injury and wrongful death case. If a family member passes as a result of medical malpractice, you can discuss how the day of discovery – i.e., the point at which you discovered a loved one’s condition – impacts your civil claim’s deadline.
Vehicular Accidents
From a study conducted between 2012 to 2014 on motor vehicle traffic crash statistics by the New York Department of Health, on average, 1,098 people die in vehicle accidents each year in New York. This situation can be the result of:
- Drunk driving
- Reckless driving
- Excessive speeding
- Distracted driving
When drivers commit these offenses and people lose their lives, they may be held liable for wrongful death.
On the other hand, if the accident happened due to poor road conditions, liability may fall on the government entity that has jurisdiction where the accident and death occurred. A wrongful death lawyer in New York from our firm can advise you on how to take action against a municipality if so.
Pedestrian Accidents
These accidents and fatalities occur as a result of someone’s distraction. Most of these cases are filed because the drivers failed to give the right of way, were speeding excessively, or were drunk at the time of the accident. Our attorneys can help you file a compensation claim if your loved one perished this way.
Defective Products
When consumers buy products, the last thing they think of is that using the product will cost them their lives. Nonetheless, some people suffer injuries and die when they use certain products. Defective products may include:
- Consumables
- Camping or sporting gear
- Medical devices
- Vehicles or vehicle parts
- Cellphones
- Children’s toys or baby products
- Prescription drugs
Whether poorly designed, improperly manufactured, or below safe standards, defective products have been known to cause harm and kill the user. Whether your injuries result from abrupt harm or long-term medical complications, our team can help you explore your routes to recovery.
We Can Establish Liability in a Wrongful Death Case
You can bring a wrongful death case to civil court after any manner of incident. The complexities of these cases can make it difficult to pin down liability, however. While you can look to precedent and evidence to determine who to hold responsible for your losses, an attorney can also guide you along the way.
In wrongful death cases, liable parties can range from government representatives to independent drivers to international manufacturers. As you strive to recover, our team will determine who to address your complaint to and, in turn, what compensation to which you may be entitled.
NY Wrongful Death Lawyers Can Help You Find Closure
Wrongful death can happen at any time, and when it does, the services of a wrongful death attorney in New York could be helpful. Our team at Morelli Law Firm will guide you through all stages of the lawsuit to help you fight for compensation for your losses.
For more information about New York’s wrongful death suits, schedule a case evaluation with our team. You can reach an office representative by phone or through our online form.