Golden Wrongful Death Attorneys
Whenever one party’s actions cause harm to another party, it can form the basis of a personal injury claim. The objective of a personal injury claim is for this victim to recover compensation for damages that the at-fault party caused, including immediate and future economic losses as well as their pain and suffering. However, not every victim of a personal injury will survive the experience. When a victim dies due to the negligence or misconduct of another party, it can form the basis of a wrongful death claim.
Compassionate Legal Counsel for Golden, CO, Wrongful Death Claims
If your family is mourning a loved one who died because of the negligent or illegal actions of another party, a Golden wrongful death attorney is an invaluable resource in this situation. The right attorney can help you determine whether you have grounds to file a wrongful death suit and, if so, help you build the most compelling case possible.
The Law Firm of Jeremy Rosenthal has extensive experience handling personal injury claims in Golden; we have also handled many wrongful death claims on behalf of families in the area. If you believe you have grounds for a wrongful death suit against any other party in Golden, it is imperative to reach out to our team for the legal counsel you will need for this difficult case as soon as possible. Securing legal representation that you can trust in a timely manner significantly increases your chance of success in ensuring accountability and recovering compensation from the party responsible for the death.
Proving Liability for a Wrongful Death in Golden
The first legal challenge the plaintiff in a wrongful death suit will face is determining liability for their family member’s death. You must identify the defendant who caused the death and then prove that their intentional misconduct or their negligence directly caused your loved one’s death. A few of the most commonly reported causes of wrongful deaths in the Golden area and throughout the state include:
- Motor vehicle accidents. Speeding, distracted driving, and driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol or drugs are just a few ways a driver could potentially cause a fatal accident. Car insurance is unlikely to cover much of the surviving family’s damages, and a wrongful death suit can hold an at-fault driver appropriately accountable for the fatal accident they caused.
- Premises liability. If your loved one died in a fatal slip and fall accident on someone else’s property, it can form the basis of a wrongful death claim under the premises liability laws. You will need to prove the property owner failed to address a foreseeable safety issue that directly caused your loved one’s fatal injury.
- Illegal misconduct. When a wrongful death occurs from violent crime, DUI, or any other breaking of Colorado law, the defendant not only faces liability for the surviving family’s damages but also criminal prosecution. They may be sentenced to fines, jail time, and punitive damages to the family of the victim, and penalties for any criminal offense automatically increase when the defendant has caused a death.
- Medical malpractice. While thousands of residents trust their doctors and other medical professionals to provide safe medical care, some medical professionals, unfortunately, cause devastating harm to the patients they treat through negligence. If your family member died from any type of medical negligence, a wrongful death suit filed under state medical malpractice law requires the attention of a seasoned and reliable attorney.
No matter how your loved one’s fatal injury occurred, you will likely need a combination of different forms of evidence to firmly establish fault for the death. Your Golden wrongful death attorney can be instrumental in building your case, helping you gather physical evidence, digital evidence, and any witness testimony you may need to establish liability for the death.
Claiming Compensation for a Wrongful Death in Golden
While a personal injury claim aims to compensate the victim of someone else’s negligence or intentional misconduct, a wrongful death suit focuses on compensation for the victim’s surviving family. Money cannot return your lost loved one, but it can help you and your family adjust to your new circumstances and have some peace of mind knowing the at-fault party is held accountable for the harm they’ve done.
Your Golden wrongful death attorney can potentially help you and your family recover various types of compensation from the defendant, including:
- Funeral and burial expenses.
- Lost value of household services that the deceased formerly provided to their family.
- Compensation for the income the deceased can no longer provide to their family. This calculation typically considers the victim’s life expectancy at the time of death and their income to determine how much they would have reasonably expected to earn in the future had they survived.
- Compensation for the family’s pain and suffering. The surviving spouse of the victim can recover compensation for the loss of companionship and affection, and the other surviving relatives can claim compensation for their grief and suffering. However, state law limits pain and suffering compensation in most wrongful death cases to $500,000.
- Damages incurred by the estate of the deceased. These cannot be directly claimed by the plaintiff but are instead awarded at the discretion of a judge. Punitive damages intend to punish a defendant for egregiously negligent or criminal behavior, and the amount they pay typically depends on their overall financial status.
Your wrongful death claim could yield more compensation than you and your family initially expect, and hiring an experienced Golden wrongful death attorney is the most effective option for enhancing your case award as much as possible.
When you choose the Law Firm of Jeremy Rosenthal to handle your claim, we will do everything we can to help you and your family maximize your recovery as much as state law allows. We’ll seek to settle the case with the defendant if possible to shorten the time it takes you to recover compensation, but if settlement is not an option for any reason, we are fully prepared to represent you in litigation.
Personal Injury Accident Attorney FAQs
Q: Who Receives the Proceeds From a Successful Wrongful Death Suit in Golden?
A: The purpose of a wrongful death claim is to secure recompense for the surviving family’s losses, and the proceeds from a successful wrongful death suit will go to the victim’s beneficiaries. These typically include their surviving spouse, children, and other close relatives. Your Golden wrongful death attorney can advise you as to what you can expect in terms of the final case award you obtain from a wrongful death suit.
Q: How Do You Prove Fault for a Wrongful Death?
A: Proving liability for a wrongful death is similar to how you would prove liability for a personal injury. To succeed with your wrongful death claim, you must identify the party responsible for causing the death and then prove that their negligence or intentional misconduct directly caused the victim’s death. In other words, you must show evidence that the death could not have resulted from any cause other than the defendant’s negligence or misconduct.
Q: Will the Defendant Go to Jail for Causing a Wrongful Death in Golden?
A: The defendant in a wrongful death suit will face liability for the surviving family’s claimed damages, but they could face criminal prosecution as well, depending on how they caused the death. If they caused a fatal injury through egregious negligence or intentional and illegal misconduct, criminal charges are likely. Additionally, they will face harsher penalties because their actions caused a fatal injury. Your Golden wrongful death attorney can advise you as to how the illegal nature of the defendant’s actions could influence your recovery.
Q: How Long Do I Have to File a Wrongful Death Suit?
A: There is a two-year statute of limitations on wrongful death claims in the state, starting on the date a death occurs. You need to file your claim within this time limit, or you will lose your chance to recover compensation for your family’s damages. It is advisable to connect with a Golden wrongful death attorney and start the claim filing process as soon as possible after a wrongful death to have the greatest chance of success with the claim.
Q: What Will It Cost to Hire a Golden Wrongful Death Attorney?
A: There is no need to worry about your legal expenses when you choose the Law Firm of Jeremy Rosenthal to handle your wrongful death case. We take these cases on a contingency fee basis, meaning our fee is a portion of the amount we recover on your family’s behalf. Additionally, you only pay this fee if we win your case, and there is no fee at all if we are unsuccessful with your wrongful death claim for any reason.
The Law Firm of Jeremy Rosenthal can help you and your family navigate an emotionally challenging and legally complex wrongful death suit in Golden. Our firm knows the stress and uncertainty that these cases impose on victims’ families and the many questions you are likely to have as you seek compensation for your loved one’s death. The sooner you connect with our firm, the more time we have to build a compelling civil suit on your behalf. Contact us today and schedule your free consultation with a Golden wrongful death attorney to start building your wrongful death suit with confidence.