New Orleans Wrongful Death Attorney
When a loved one dies due to the negligence of another, survivors must deal with the emotional and financial consequences. If your family depended on an income that will no longer be there, our New Orleans wrongful death lawyers can estimate and work to recover the income your loved one would have earned in the future.
The injury attorneys at Law Office of John W. Redmann, LLC in Gretna, Louisiana, is dedicated to helping family members of fatally injured accident victims to achieve justice and compensation in tragic circumstances.
For more than 20 years, John W. Redmann has represented the family members of fatally injured people in wrongful death and serious injury lawsuits, helping them recover money to cover their deceased loved ones’ medical bills, funeral expenses and lost income, as well as compensate for non-monetary losses like pain and suffering and loss of companionship.
New Orleans Wrongful Death Resources:
- Do You Need a Lawyer?
- What is Considered Wrongful Death?
- How Do You Prove Wrongful Death?
- What is the Statute of Limitations?
Wrongful Death Justice for You and Your Family
Our New Orleans wrongful death attorneys cannot end your grief or bring back your loved one. However, we can help you to recover money and re-establish a sense of justice, if your loved one died as a result of any of the following:
- Car crash
- Motorcycle crash
- Commercial truck collision
- Workplace accident
- Medical malpractice at hospitals, clinics and care facilities
Our New Orleans injury lawyers utilize an accident re-constructionist, medical experts, earnings consultants and other professionals in the investigations. They do this to determine the factors that caused your loved one’s death, to identify each of the parties responsible for any negligence, and to determine a financial basis for compensating you.
Do You Need a New Orleans Wrongful Death Lawyer?
Hiring an attorney is an important choice, and most wrongful death attorneys can help their clients achieve much better results in their cases than they could manage without representation. A wrongful death attorney can help you and your family mourn with peace of mind knowing you have professional legal counsel on your side and ready to pursue legal action on your behalf.
A New Orleans wrongful death lawyer will not only represent you and your loved ones in court but also help explore all available avenues of compensation available in your wrongful death claim, manage correspondence with insurance carriers if necessary, and help secure expert witness testimony to support your wrongful death claim if necessary. The untimely loss of a loved one due to another party’s negligence is a stressful and challenging experience for anyone, and a wrongful death lawyer can help make the recovery process easier on those affected by an untimely death.
What Constitutes a Wrongful Death?
A wrongful death claim in many ways functions essentially as a personal injury claim filed on behalf of a victim who did not survive his or her injuries. If another party caused an individual to develop a serious illness or caused a fatal injury due to negligence, the responsible party is liable for the wrongful death and all associated damages. Since the victim cannot represent him or herself, a beneficiary of the deceased’s estate or the deceased’s personal representative may file a wrongful death claim on his or her behalf.
Louisiana law outlines exactly who may file wrongful death claims. In the event a personal representative or beneficiary is unavailable or unwilling to pursue a wrongful death claim, the court may appoint a representative. Otherwise, the right to file a wrongful death claim typically falls to the deceased’s surviving family members, and distribution of proceeds from a successful wrongful death claim will follow state laws for intestate succession.
- The surviving spouse and/or children of the deceased.
- The surviving parent or parents of the deceased if the deceased did not have a surviving spouse or any surviving children.
- If the deceased does not have any surviving parents, a sibling may file a wrongful death claim instead.
- Finally, a grandparent may file a wrongful death claim if no other surviving kin exist.
Family members related by adoption have the same rights as family members related by blood. However, if a parent abandoned a child and then the child died of a wrongful death, the parent would not have grounds to file a wrongful death claim and the court would consider the parent as if he or she died before the victim.
It is also possible for an individual to name a personal representative in his or her will or estate plan. If so, the named representative has the first right to file a wrongful death claim. If the deceased did not explicitly name a personal representative, any beneficiary with a claim on the estate and the proper familial link to the deceased may file the claim instead.
How Do You Prove Wrongful Death?
Proving wrongful death requires identifying the party responsible for the wrongful death and then establishing a breach of duty of care that led to the death.
- A surgeon who made a fatal mistake during surgery due to negligence is guilty of causing a wrongful death.
- A drunk driver who hits and kills another motorist would be guilty for a wrongful death.
- An armed assailant who robs a person at gunpoint and mistakenly shoots and kills the victim would be liable for wrongful death and likely face criminal charges for involuntary manslaughter or second-degree murder.
Proving negligence in a wrongful death claim follows the same basic framework of proving negligence in a personal injury lawsuit. The plaintiffs must identify the defendant in the claim, establish the defendant’s breached duty of care to the victim, and then provide evidence of the full extent of the losses resulting from the death.
What Is the Statute of Limitations on Wrongful Death?
Every state upholds a statute of limitations or time limit for filing a wrongful death claim. In Louisiana, the statute of limitations on wrongful death claims is one year, starting on the date of the death in question. However, if no one can immediately determine the cause of death but the family later discovers the cause of death, the statute of limitations may begin on the date they discovered this information under the discovery rule.
One year may sound like a relatively long time, but it is essential for wrongful death claimants to work very quickly to ensure a recovery after the wrongful death of a loved one.
If an Insurance Company Won’t Pay, We’ll Fight
Insurance companies are often unwilling to pay the full amount of death benefits to survivors of accident victims. Our New Orleans wrongful death attorneys spent many years holding insurance companies accountable for what they owe our clients through bad faith insurance lawsuits. Often, just the threat of a lawsuit will bring insurers to the negotiating table to discuss a reasonable settlement.
A favorable settlement or jury verdict can give you much-needed peace of mind, as well as the financial wherewithal to face challenges in your future. For more information about the Law Office of John W. Redmann, L.L.C., or to consult with a lawyer about your circumstances and legal options, contact us online or call (504) 500-5000 today.
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