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Baltimore Wrongful Death Lawyer

Wrongful Death Claims

Wrongful DeathFamilies mourning the death of a loved one often have legal options they have not considered. In many cases involving product liability, medical malpractice, vehicle collisions, negligence, and intentional violence, a civil wrongful death suit or even criminal charges may be an option for families who have lost a loved one. Though wrongful death is a relatively new legal construct, it can help families recover damages and come to terms with the seemingly senseless death of a loved one.

You May Have Questions

Some of the many questions that may be in your mind are:

  • What is a wrongful death?
  • What types of claims are common in wrongful death cases?
  • Who might be considered at fault?
  • What are the two basic types of Maryland wrongful death cases?
  • Who can recover damages in a wrongful death suit?
  • Are there limits on damages?
  • What is the statute of limitations?
You may also be concerned about the unique challenges of wrongful death cases.

Sometimes it is necessary to embark on a legal investigation in order to understand exactly what happened, as well as to honor the memory of the departed family member and secure the future of the remainder of the family.

Featured Article: What We Mean by Wrongful Death

Maryland Wrongful Death LawyerDeath is a part of life. We accept the fact that we sometimes lose people we love because we have no other choice. But when our loved ones are taken from us needlessly because someone else acts negligently or recklessly, we have the right to make sure that person is held accountable. Wrongful death claims are legal actions taken by survivors of a deceased person to hold the responsible party accountable for the damages they have caused. These claims are different than pressing criminal charges, which is typically done by the state. Wrongful death claims are civil actions, which means they are filed by one or more people against another person or entity. Continue Reading

What Is a “Wrongful Death”?

The legal term “wrongful death” isn’t one you may be familiar with. When an unexpected death is “wrongful,” it means that the person’s death was caused by another party’s negligence or unlawful action. Parties can be individuals or business entities. Wrongful death can often be the basis for bringing a suit against the negligent individual or entity. Such suits are filed on behalf of suffering family members who miss the company and support the deceased person would have given them.

Briefly, a wrongful death is one that should not have happened and that is due to another person or entity’s negligent or wrongful actions.

Examples of Wrongful Death Claims

Potential wrongful death cases can cover a wide variety of situations. Some examples of wrongful death are:

  • At work, a machinery malfunction injures someone, causing their death.
  • The wrong medication is prescribed, and the person who takes it dies.
  • A medical professional fails to diagnose cancer in it’s early stages, leading to death.
  • A defective product creates mortal injuries, killing the person.
  • A person in a vehicular crash dies because of the wrongful actions of the other driver.

An Example of At-Fault Possibilities

MD Car Accident AttorneyIn a Baltimore wrongful death suit, there may be many defendants, depending upon the situation. For example, when a person died in a crash that involved both a driver under the influence and a problem with the roadway’s surface, the list of those who might be included in the suit could include:

  • The driver under the influence
  • The driver’s employer, if the driver was on the job at the time of the crash
  • The designer of the flawed roadway
  • The builder of the flawed roadway
  • The government agent that did not warn about the road hazard, if applicable.

Additionally, if any of the automobiles were defective and that contributed to the death, then the list of entities that could be sued might include the distributor, installer, and manufacturer of the defective automobiles. Examples include seat back failure, fuel-fed fires, fuel tank puncture, defective airbags, vehicle rollovers resulting in roof crashes, defective seatbelts, faulty fuel lines, faulty ignition switches causing loss of power steering and brakes, and more.

What Types of Wrongful Death Claims Can Be Pursued in Maryland?

Maryland’s laws address two types of claims when it comes to wrongful death:

  • Survival actions. These legal actions are brought for the estate of the deceased. Survival actions compensate for expenses related to the wrongful death, such as final medical bills and funeral and burial expenses. Survival actions also pay the estate for any losses the deceased suffered, such as for pain and suffering from the final injury or illness.
  • Wrongful death actions. Such actions are brought for the deceased’s primary survivors: spouse, parents, and children. These actions compensate the living, not the estate, for losses they have suffered connected to the wrongful death of their loved one. Compensated losses include lost companionship, lost support, and lost wages.

Who Can Recover Damages in a Wrongful Death Suit?

In Maryland, only primary beneficiaries or secondary beneficiaries can file for damages:

  • Primary beneficiaries are the parents, surviving spouse, and children of the deceased. A primary beneficiary, if living, can file both a survival claim and a wrongful death claim. Any damages awarded go only to primary beneficiaries.
  • Secondary beneficiaries are brothers and sisters, cousins, nieces and nephews, and other related persons. A secondary beneficiary can file for damages only if there are no primary beneficiaries and the secondary beneficiary was substantially dependent upon the deceased.

If there are no primary or secondary beneficiaries, there is no wrongful death claim.

Are There Limits on Damages in Maryland?

In our state, you can sue for economic damages such as final medical expenses, funeral and burial expenses, lost wages and pensions, and the costs of bringing the suit, including the legal costs.

Maryland does impose limits on non-economic monetary damages, or what are commonly known as “pain and suffering” damages. As of October 1, 2022, the damages cap for a wrongful death case is $920,000, with the survival action damages capped at the same amount.

The wrongful death cap increases to $1,380,000 if there are two or more beneficiaries. Thus, the maximum total non-economic damages (wrongful death and survival action combined) that can be awarded are currently $2,300,000. The cap increases by $15,000.00 on October 1st of every year. The next cap increase is on 1, 2023.

What Challenges Do Wrongful Death Cases Face?

Wrongful death lawsuits can culminate in time-consuming and complex jury trials, but they can also often be settled with the help of a Baltimore wrongful death lawyer. In any case, it is difficult to predict the amount of time or the costs associated with a wrongful death lawsuit, since each wrongful death case is unique. The issues might be extremely straightforward (an auto accident where the defendant struck the decedent head on) or quite obscure (a complex medical malpractice case involving misdiagnosis, multiple treating facilities and voluminous medical records).

How Can a Baltimore Wrongful Death Attorney Help You?

If you’re interested in pursuing a wrongful death claim in relation to a relative who has passed away, your first step should be to seek an attorney with experience litigating wrongful death matters. The wrongful death statutes can be difficult to understand and interpret, so legal assistance is a must from the very beginning. Also, the sooner you start, the better, because Maryland’s wrongful death statute of limitations is three years.

Track record, experience and demeanor are all factors that should influence your decision to go with a Baltimore wrongful death attorney. Ideally, your Baltimore wrongful death lawyer will have the resources and manpower to help you obtain the best verdict possible. This includes expert witness contacts and an extensive understanding of state laws and civil procedure.

The Law Offices of Steven H. Heisler specializes in the representation of personal injury victims, including the families of those who have lost their lives due to wrongful death. Contact us today for more information on whether you have a valid wrongful death lawsuit in Baltimore by using our online contact form, or call us at 1-410-625-4878.

Recent Wrongful Death Case Results

Case Type: Wrongful Death / Settlement: $1,200,000

Steve and co-counsel represented the family of a teenage boy who died when several school counselors at the Youth facility he attended forcibly restrained him in a prone position for several hours, causing him to suffocate. The case settled in mediation for 1.2 million dollars.

Case Type: Wrongful Death / Settlement: $975,000

Steve represented the family of an individual who was struck and killed by a school bus while riding his motorcycle. The case settled for $975,000.

Case Type: Wrongful Death / Settlement: $3,000,000

Steve represented the family of a lady who died after contracting Legionnaire’s disease from a hot tub. The case settled before trial for $3 million.

Attorney Steve Heisler

Steve Heisler decided in 1996 that he was going to focus his law practice exclusively on injury cases. Since then, he has been representing injured people against insurance companies, disreputable medical practitioners and Big Pharma, and doing it with compassion, honesty and level-headed rationality. [ Attorney Bio ]