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Wrongful Death Lawyers – Survival Benefits Lawsuits

Since 1958, The Beasley Firm has fought for injured persons and their families, obtaining over $2 billion in awards for our clients through hundreds of multi-million dollar settlements and jury verdicts. We obtained a record setting $29 million verdict on behalf of a pilot who lost control of his airplane because of a defective seat. In 2010, an appeals court affirmed a $20.5 million verdict on behalf of a young woman who needlessly died as a result of a liposuction procedure. In 2009, we recovered $3.5 million for a young woman killed by a tractor-trailer. If you have lost a loved one in an accident or as the result of someone else’s negligence, contact our wrongful death lawyers for a confidential, no-obligation consultation by filling out our online contact form or by calling The Beasley Firm at (888) 823-5291.

 

Wrongful Death Lawsuits Seek Compensation And Benefits A Decedent’s Loved Ones

When a person dies as the result of someone else’s negligence, the law allows the deceased person’s close family members to bring a claim for wrongful death, requesting compensation for the loss of their loved one.  The beneficiaries of the decedent’s will, through the administrator of the decedent’s estate, can also bring a “survival” claim for the decedent’s pain and suffering before they died.

Wrongful death and survival lawsuits are proven in court the same way as typical personal injury, medical malpractice, and product liability claims are proven: by showing that the defendant’s negligence, recklessness, or intentional misconduct caused or contributed to the person’s death.  Thus, the “proof” of a wrongful death case is the same as the proof of any other negligence lawsuit.

 

Insurance Companies Fight Wrongful Death And Survival Claims The Hardest

There are, however, two key differences between wrongful death / survival lawsuits and regular personal injury lawsuits. The first is the type of damages available: in a personal injury lawsuit, the injured person is compensated for their lost wages, for the medical costs they have incurred, and for their pain and suffering, while in a wrongful death / survival claim the decedent’s estate is compensated for the value of the decedent’s claim as if they had lived to recover economic damages and pain and suffering, and the decedent’s close family members are compensated for their loss in household income, familial support, and companionship.

The second big difference is the size of the damages and thus in the resources and efforts that insurance companies, big corporations, and their lawyers put into fighting wrongful death claims.  In a slip and fall case that just caused minor injuries which healed, the insurance company will limit how strongly they defend the case because their potential liability is not very large.  In a wrongful death case, however, the damages can easily extend into the millions of dollars – many of our wrongful death cases have resulted in settlements or jury verdicts for tens of millions, even hundreds of millions of dollars – and so insurance companies adopt a scorched-earth approach, hiring more lawyers and better lawyers to defend these cases. It is not uncommon for insurance companies to spend over a million dollars in attorney’s fees and litigation costs to have the family’s case dismissed, to try to convince the jury the accident wasn’t their fault, or to persuade the jury to award less in compensation.

 

Winning Wrongful Death Cases Depends Upon Persistence, Preparation, And The Investment Of Time And Resources

At The Beasley Firm, we pride ourselves on the investment of attorney time, attention, and expertise we devote to every wrongful death case. We do not hesitate to invest the financial resources necessary to prove the merits of the claim and prove the full scope of damages to the jury, countering the insurance company lawyer’s arguments and rebutting their experts’ testimony.  Most of our wrongful death cases require an investment of hundred thousand dollars or more; in many cases, we have invested $500,000 or more of our own money — not counting our attorneys’ and paralegals’ time — into hiring the most qualified outside doctors, engineers, forensic examiners, accountants, and economists to serve as expert witnesses to present the very best and most persuasive case we can on behalf of our clients.

That’s how we built an unparalleled legacy for wrongful death cases, in which our clients have been awarded over $1 billion in settlements and jury verdicts, and how we’ll approach your case.  Let us put our experience and resources to work for you and your family by filling out our online contact form or by calling The Beasley Firm at (888) 823-5291. You can also read more about wrongful death lawsuits on our blog.

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