Wrongful Death Lawyer Serving Fort Lauderdale

Fort Lauderdale Wrongful Death LawyersFort Lauderdale is home to over 180,000 people and is also a popular tourist destination. It is known for its beautiful beaches and oceanic views. The city, located on the Southeastern Coast of Florida, has countless luxurious and chic restaurants, hotels, and bars lining the coastal line that you can visit, eat at, and lounge at while admiring the amazing ocean view. The standard of living in Florida is high, and the city is ranked as one of the more expensive ones to live in, but despite that, it is the perfect vacation spot for many.

In a big city like Fort Lauderdale , accidents do occur. Be it vehicular accidents, medical complications and malpractice, an incident with a defective product, or even a simple slip and fall event, accidents happen on a daily basis. Sometimes, these accidents may result in a fatality.

If you find yourself in the tragic situation of losing a loved one through someone else’s negligence, you have the right to seek compensation. The experienced attorneys at Frankl Kominsky are available to evaluate your claim. Our goal is to help protect your rights and pursue full compensation for your loss.

Types of Wrongful Death Claims in Fort LauderdaleAccidental Death Claims as a Result of a Car or Auto Accident

Car and auto accidents are one of the most common causes of death in a city. In an urban center like Fort Lauderdale, you’ll usually find a large number of vehicles moving on the streets at any given time. In case of collisions, some people escape with minor injuries and scratches, while in more severe accidents, the victim ends up losing their life.

Accidents Involving Semi-trucks, Commercial Trucks, Tractor Trailers or 18-Wheelers

While in car accidents, many times people do escape with their lives, with heavy vehicles like 18-wheelers, semi-trucks, tractor-trailers, and commercial trucks, the chances of surviving and recovering from a serious collision are drastically reduced.

Fatalities involving Motorcycle, Bike, and Pedestrian Accidents

Motorcycle and bike accidents are comparatively rarer because of the size and weight of these vehicles. However, overspeeding bikes and motorcycles can cause severe damage and even death to passers-by and pedestrians.

Workplace Deaths

Many wrongful deaths also occur at work or due to injuries sustained due to the nature of the work. Whether they are directly caused due to the negligence of the employer or not, the employer may be held accountable if someone dies while performing work-related duties. Workplace accidents include slipping and falling off a construction site or getting hit by a vehicle in the parking lot of a factory.

Slip, Trip, and Fall Accidents Resulting in Death

One of the most common ways of losing your life is to a slip, trip and fall incident. Workers such as construction workers, maintenance workers, and roofers often fall to their deaths while working at great heights. They can slip off ledges, ladders, and even potholes. While many escape with broken limbs, for some, the damage is incredibly serious, and the situation becomes life-threatening.

Defective Products

Oftentimes, it is a faulty or expired product that becomes the cause of someone’s unfortunate death. If you can prove that a defective or low-quality product is the culprit behind the death of a family member, you can potentially hold the manufacturer of the faulty or substandard product responsible. Manufacturers often do not test their products and deviate from the standards, which, in extreme cases, can lead to someone’s death.

Medical Malpractice

Medical malpractice is reported as another common cause of wrongful death that may occur in Fort Lauderdale. An oversight or carelessness on the part of doctors and surgeons can cause someone’s untimely death.

If any of your loved ones has died an untimely death as the result of someone else’s negligence, you may have a claim for Wrongful Death. Speak to an experienced injury lawyer for guidance on your legal options.

Who Can File a Wrongful Death Claim?

In Fort Lauderdale and the rest of Florida, the personal representative of the deceased person's estate is eligible to file a wrongful death claim. The personal representative is someone that may be named in the deceased person's will or estate plan. If there is no will or estate plan, the personal representative will be appointed by the court.

Although the wrongful death claim is filed by the personal representative, it is filed on behalf of the deceased person's estate and any surviving family members. In the wrongful death claim, the personal representative must list every survivor who has an interest in the case.

The primary people who are eligible to pursue a wrongful death lawsuit are called statutory beneficiaries. They include:

Spouse: The surviving spouse can file a lawsuit on behalf of their partner. The spouse is then eligible to receive damages such as: loss of companionship and loss of financial support.

Parents: The parents can bring a wrongful death lawsuit if they lose their child as the result of an accident. The parents can claim for compensatory damages such as pain and suffering, burial and medical expenses, among other things.

Children: Adult children can also file a lawsuit in court for the wrongful death of either of their parents. They can state loss of guardianship and loss of financial support as consequences and receive compensation.

In case statutory beneficiaries do not exist to pursue a wrongful death lawsuit, people from their extended family or even acquaintances can come forward.

Distant family members: All family members could possibly be eligible to file a claim in the absence of statutory beneficiaries, such as grandparents and aunts/uncles.

Financial Dependants: In case the deceased did not have any existing family, the financial dependents of the deceased can step forth with the wrongful death lawsuit and claim compensation for the loss of financial support and future earnings.

If you are unsure about whether you qualify to pursue a claim, contact the attorneys at Frankl Kominsky.

How Long Do You Have to File a Wrongful Death?

The amount of time you have to file a wrongful death lawsuit is limited by the Statute of Limitations. In Florida, for a Wrongful Death action, the Statute of Limitations sets a time of two years from the death of the person. If you fail to file your Wrongful Death lawsuit within the Statute of Limitations your case will likely be dismissed.

To find out more about the Statute of Limitations and the reasoning behind it, watch this video that explains all the intricacies related to the Statute of Limitations.

What Types of Damages You Can Recover in a Wrongful Death ClaimMedical Bills and Expenses as a Result of the Accident

If the person had been fighting for their life before they passed away, the family left behind still has to bear the expenses of the patient’s medical treatment. The most basic type of damage that must always be recovered is that of the medical bills.

Funeral and Burial Expenses

The deceased’s family has to prepare for the funeral ceremony and arrange the burial of the deceased. They can use the monetary damages to pay for these expenses.

Lost Earnings; Loss of Support and Services

The surviving family members must also be compensated for the services and support they were getting from the deceased. These services and support can be financial, emotional, or physical.

Loss of Net Accumulations (Future Income)

If the deceased was the financial support of the family, then the family may also be entitled to receive the financial support that the deceased would have potentially provided.

Pain and Suffering

Losing a family member is a hard ordeal to go through, and the lawsuit attempts to assign a monetary value to it to pay to the grieving family.

Loss of Companionship, Protection, Guidance, and Instruction

Relationships are priceless, but your wrongful death lawyer can pursue compensation for the loss of companionship and guidance.

Calculating Wrongful Death Claim in Broward County

Wrongful death lawsuits require meticulous analysis of several factors to calculate the compensation that should be awarded to the grieving family of the deceased. While no amount is enough to compensate for a human life, the compensatory amount aims to make the life of the surviving family easier by covering financial expenses and complications that the family has to face as a result of the death.

Several factors contribute to the calculation of the final worth of a wrongful death claim. These include:

  • The funeral and burial expenses
  • The emotional trauma that the family faces after losing a loved one
  • The loss of guardianship and/or companionship
  • House chores that the surviving family will have to hire help for
  • The life expectancy of the survivor and the victims – a 25-year-old’s death might carry a heavier fine than a 65-year-old’s

Additionally, the final compensation calculation also hinges on the following considerations:

  • What services and support have been lost by the surviving family
  • The deceased’s relationship to the bringer of the lawsuit
  • How the survivor will replace the services provided by the deceased, such as the sole breadwinner of the family

There are many other factors that come into play when calculating the amount of compensation. Each case is different and has different circumstances. If the deceased had children, they could also be compensated for the loss of parental guidance, while if the deceased had elderly parents that they supported, they would be compensated for the loss of financial and emotional support that the deceased was offering them.

Personal Injury Claim vs. Wrongful Death Claim

The term personal injury claim is pretty self-explanatory; a claim brought forth by someone who has suffered injuries to their health, body, or mind, due to the carelessness and recklessness of another party. In a personal injury claim, the affected persons bring the claim and may be compensated for the suffering as well as the medical bills to treat those injuries.

Personal injuries can be caused by vehicular accidents such as motorcycles, cars, trucks, or buses. They can also be caused by a defective product or medical malpractice. If someone develops a disability as a result of someone else’s negligent actions, it can also count as a personal injury.

Accidents can sometimes lead to a fatality. Many of the circumstances surrounding personal injury accidents are potentially life-threatening, and many are not lucky enough to make it through. If a person passes away due to any of the aforementioned reasons, the personal injury claim quickly turns into a wrongful death one, where the responsible party is not only held liable for the injuries caused, but for the death of a person.

Wrongful death claims can potentially be made against individuals, businesses, employers, and also government agencies.

Whether you are pursuing a claim for personal injuries for yourself or for the undue death of a loved one, contact the attorneys at Frankl Kominsky for dedicated legal representation.

What Can Frankl Kominsky Try To Do For Me?

The legal team at Frankl Kominsky will investigate the details of the case and strive to negotiate on your behalf to obtain compensation for your claim. If you are someone who has been injured in a car accident, medical malpractice, slip and fall or have lost a dear family member to an accident at work, contact us for a free consultation and let us handle it from there. Our knowledgeable lawyers will represent you in court and strive to pursue the compensation you deserve.

With over 40 years of combined experience and 7,000 individuals represented, our Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyers have helped clients recover monetary benefits to make up for the damage and trauma, financial and otherwise, that they faced in the aftermath of a loved one’s death.

We understand the sensitivity of such tragic cases, and our attorneys are compassionate and considerate while dealing with grieving family members. You can rest assured that our lawyers are dedicated to getting you the justice that you deserve. You can recover and grieve for the death of your loved one while our experienced lawyers handle the case specifics for you, and try to fight for your right to damages.

At Frankl Kominsky, we offer a free consultation or free case reviews. Contact our injury firm for any questions, appointments, or case evaluations by filling out the free case evaluation form. You can also contact us at 954-627-1661.

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