When we say a person dies due to “wrongful death,” that means that person died because of the negligence or wrongful act of one person or an entity. By entity, this means any juridical entity, not necessarily a person, permitted by law to negotiate and carry transactions on its own and which has its own personality distinct from the owner like say, a corporation or even the government.
There are several instances in which a person could die from “wrongful death” and the more common examples are car accidents, boat or ship accidents, and even airplane accidents. Other instances could also include wrongful death arising from medical negligence, intake from hazardous food or products, and work-related injuries brought about by the nature of the work or exposure to unsafe substances and unsafe work conditions. Still, there might also be occurrences due to criminal attacks or even supervised activities like sports and school activities that could result to this kind of death for one person.
Since it is difficult to determine whether the death of a loved one is by natural causes, something borne from an act of God, or because of some third party’s fault or negligence, knowing your right as an immediate family member of the deceased, who is to blame, and what kind of compensation could you get from them are all necessary pointers you need to have knowledge of.
The family of the person who died in a wrongful death may claim for compensation damages in a civil court against the person or entity responsible for the wrongful death. Normally, the estate and the surviving immediate family members will have the right to claim for damages. Specifically, the estate will be allowed to get compensation for the decedent’s lost earnings due to the wrongful death, the medical expenses incurred, the funeral outlay shelved out, and damages for the conscious pain and suffering of the decedent while he was still alive. Other family members can also claim individual damages due to the loved one’s loss, probably incorporating the “loss of consortium” and emotional distress in the process.
